Bernie Lynch, the songwriter and founding force behind Australian pop group Eurogliders, has died at the age of 65 following a battle with cancer.
The musician was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2024 and underwent treatment that was initially successful, unfortunately by late 2025 further cancers had developed throughout his body (Per ABC).
Lynch helped shape one of Australia’s most recognisable pop acts of the 1980s, forming Eurogliders in 1980 after earlier projects including The Stockings and Living Single, the band’s defining partnership began when Lynch recruited Grace Knight, who had recently moved to Perth from the United Kingdom, to front the group, Knight paid tribute to her longtime bandmate in a heartfelt message shared online.
“I don’t know how many shows Eurogliders have done over the years, it must be thousands, and for every single one of them, I’ve had Bernie there, standing beside me.”
Knight and Lynch were also married during the 1980s, though their creative partnership continued long after their personal relationship ended.
“It’s been such a wonderful, wonderful journey and I’m so very proud and honoured to have shared it with him.”
A defining voice in Australian pop
Eurogliders rose to prominence during the early 1980s with a string of radio hits, combining new wave sheen with sharp songwriting, their biggest success came in 1984 with ‘Heaven (Must Be There)’, which climbed to No. 2 on the Australian charts and later reached No. 21 on the US Billboard chart, giving the band rare international traction at the time.
The group initially disbanded at the end of the 1980s before reuniting in the mid 2000s, that reunion produced their first album in 17 years and saw the band take part in the nostalgic Countdown Spectacular tour.
Eurogliders later reunited again during the 2010s, continuing to release music and perform live, their most recent album, ‘The Blue Kiss Project’, arrived in 2021.
The band’s final performance took place in Newcastle late last year, and they had been scheduled to appear at the Rock The Backyard festival in Penrith later this month, reflecting on Lynch’s legacy, Knight emphasised just how central his songwriting was to the band’s identity.
“Without Bernie’s songs, there would be no Eurogliders.”
“Songs he wrote as a young man that are still being listened to, songs that 40 years later still get played on the radio, songs that people still sing along to at our shows, songs that have brought so much joy to so many people.”
“What a great legacy and such a fantastic contribution to the cultural landscape of this country.”
Follow me for more on the Australian and US Music Scene:
MORE IN News
