Poster girl of controversy

>> Star who became known not just for her singing voice >> She fought for & took stand on political and social injustices

- SANDRA MALLON

OUTSPOKEN singer Sinead O'Connor was one of the most influential, yet controversial, figures to come out of Ireland over the past three decades.

Shaven-headed Sinead, who was revered across the globe for her hauntingly beautiful voice, had the world at her feet when her smash-hit single Nothing Compares 2 U went global in 1990.

But rather than play the showbusiness game, Sinead instead spoke up about major social and political issues that often saw her alienate her fan base.

The Dubliner showed a portent of things to come in 1991 when she boycotted the "commercial" Grammy Awards and refused to accept her award for Best Alternative Album.

The same year she sparked outrage after refusing to have the American national anthem played before her concert at the Garden State Arts Center in New Jersey and was banned from several radio stations in New York as a result.

Just a year later, she shocked the world when she ripped up a poster of Pope John Paul II on Saturday Night Live in the US.

Sinead, who had been abused as a child and spent time in a Magdalene Laundry, said it was a protest against the sexual abuse of children in the Catholic Church.

CEREMONY

It was her second SNL appearance in two years, but it was to be her last.

But she was eventually credited with helping thousands of victims of church sexual abuse come forward.

Despite her stance, Sinead shocked fans by announcing she had become a priest after she was pronounced Mother Bernadette Mary at a ceremony staged by the Latin Tridentine church.