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Markéta Irglová’s appearance at Glen Hansard’s funeral offered a poignant coda to a partnership that began on screen and threaded through both artists’ lives. Her performance, and the quieter path she has followed since the success of Once, underline how public and private chapters in their story have diverged.
From a shared moment on screen to an off‑screen relationship
Their connection first became visible to many through the Oscar‑hailed film Once, and the chemistry captured there led audiences to follow their real‑life relationship. Hansard, already known for his work with The Frames, remained a visible public figure. Irglová, by contrast, increasingly stepped away from constant media attention even as their lives continued to intersect.
Her decision to perform at his funeral was widely noted as a significant and intimate gesture, returning her briefly to the spotlight at a moment of collective mourning.
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Reordering life: marriage, a move and a new partner
Irglová’s personal life shifted markedly after the height of Once’s fame. In 2011 she married US studio engineer Tim Iseler; that marriage ended after about a year. Around the same time she left New York for Iceland to work on her second solo project and to regroup away from public scrutiny.
Writing to fans during this period, she explained the lull in her public presence: “It’s been pretty long since I’ve reached out to you. Apologies for my sudden disappearance… A year ago, I arrived in Iceland to make my second solo record and it was a sort of catalyst for many things in my life, and I suppose I withdrew a little bit to deal with everything that happened and changed.”
She continued: “In short, I got married two years ago, got divorced a year later, ended up relocating from New York to Iceland, where I have been living and working away on the record, which has now been finished and is waiting to be shared with the world. I am very happy these days, enjoying life, in love again.”
Irglová later married Icelandic musician Sturla Míó Þórisson in 2012. Their daughter, Árveig, was born in 2013. The couple went on to have two sons; the first, Eyvindur, arrived in 2015, and the family has kept the name of the younger son private.
Continuing a musical career on her own terms
Professionally, Irglová has continued to record and perform. Her solo albums include Anar (2011) and Muna (2014). She and her husband collaborated on the soundtrack for Home Is Here in 2016, and more recently she released the EP Where You Belong.
She has also toured intermittently with The Swell Season, balancing family life in Iceland with ongoing creative projects.
Ties that remain
Despite different life trajectories, Irglová and Hansard stayed connected. When Hansard became a father in 2022, she was among the first to send public congratulations, writing: “Dearest Glen, I can’t tell you how wonderful it is to get to see you in this role, a husband and a father, beaming with love and contentment, proud and strong.”
On her own social accounts she frequently posts affectionate messages about her husband, once writing: “Thank you for sharing your life with me, and for all the ways you make mine beautiful. You are one of a kind.”
That mix of openness and privacy has defined Irglová’s path since the Once phenomenon — a musician who has chosen a quieter life without leaving the stage entirely. Her appearance at Hansard’s funeral reminded many of the shared history between the two artists, while underscoring how each has since shaped a separate life and career.
