Susan Boyle Reveals Medical Issue That Impacted Singing Career

Susan Boyle shed light on a medical emergency she had last year while appearing on the season 16 finale of Britain's Got Talent earlier this week.

Following her performance of "I Dreamed a Dream" from Les Misérables on Sunday, hosts Dec Donnelly and Ant McPartlin asked Boyle what it felt like to be back on the stage of the show that started it all and secured her stardom.

"It feels great," she replied. "It is extra special for me actually because last April there, I suffered a minor stroke."

The 62-year-old Scottish-born singer went on, hinting that her recovery wasn't easy. "I have fought like crazy to get back on stage," she revealed. "And I have done it."

Shortly after her surprise appearance, Boyle expressed immense gratitude alongside a series of images showing the singer performing and posing alongside Les Mis cast members.

"Tonight I had the privilege of returning to @bgt and performing with the wonderful cast of @lesmizofficial," she wrote. "This evening was even more special for me as in April of 2022 I had a stroke."

Her June 4 statement continued, "For the past year I have worked so hard to get my speech and singing back, with the sole aim of being able to sing on stage again & tonight my hard work & perseverance paid off, singing the song that started it all, 'I Dreamed A Dream'…"

Boyle first rose to international stardom in 2009 following her iconic performance of the song for BGT went viral. Though she wasn't crowned the season's champ–unexpectedly beaten by dance troupe Diversity, finishing in second place– she released her debut album, I Dreamed a Dream, later that year, which earned the title of all-time highest sales by a solo female artist–selling 411,820 copies in November 2009 alone–and was the second-biggest selling album of 2009 in the U.S., with 3.1 million copies sold, right behind Taylor Swift's Fearless which sold 3.2 million copies.