Eurogliders co-founder Bernie Lynch has died aged 72 after a battle with cancer. Lynch formed the pop and new wave duo with singer Grace Knight in Perth in 1980, helping create a signature sound that became part of Australia’s musical fabric through hits such as Heaven (Must Be There) and We Will Together.
Known by many simply as Heaven, the song reached No. 2 on the Australian charts in 1984, found audiences in the US, Canada and New Zealand, and won Best Single at the Countdown Music Awards.
Knight shared the news of Lynch’s death on the band’s social media on Tuesday, saying he died last Thursday while in palliative care. Lynch was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2024 and, after treatment, returned to performing. Later, the cancer was found in his bones and organs and, as Knight explained, he “started to deteriorate rapidly. Initially, it was thought chemotherapy could extend his life expectancy, but ultimately, he became too ill to continue with treatment.”
Eurogliders last performed in Sydney in November.
In her tribute, Knight reflected on a bond that stretched back to her early years in Australia. “I am heartbroken and don’t know how to proceed without him. I arrived in Australia as a 21-year-old in 1977 and met Bernie not too long after, we’ve been in each other’s lives ever since,” she wrote. “I can’t imagine what our lives would have looked like had we not crossed paths with each other.”
She also spoke about the constancy of sharing a stage for decades. “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 added, “It’s been such a wonderful, wonderful journey and I’m so very proud and honoured to have shared it with him.”
Beyond the music, Knight remembered Lynch as someone who looked after those around him, making sure there was a cheese plate and a “refreshing beverage” waiting after performances. She said he would often arrive at her home with bags of food, take over the kitchen, and settle in for a long chat.
She credited his songwriting as the foundation of the band’s success, noting that the music continues to resonate decades on, including Heaven, which remains a radio staple and is still used in advertising. “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,” Knight wrote. “Songs that have bought so much joy to so many people. What a great legacy and such a fantastic contribution to the cultural landscape of this country.”
Her farewell captured both the highs and hardships of a long shared life in music. “My dear friend. We soared high, we grappled in the mud. What an incredible life we shared. I feel immense gratitude. I can’t let you go; I won’t let you go.”
Lynch and Knight were married after a long relationship in the 1980s, but separated after a year while continuing their friendship and working partnership over the following four decades. Lynch also composed music for theatre and screen, and spent time in the fashion world during his nine-year marriage in the 1990s to Australian designer Collette Dinnigan.
