NIAMH O’BRIEN, the Irish dancer and wife of Michael Flatley, has died at the age of 52. 

“My heart is broken. I have lost my beautiful wife, Niamh, and my best friend. My gorgeous bride of twenty years has gone to the Lord in Heaven,” Flatley said in a statement. 

“She was the most loving mother, wife and person, and our lives will never be the same without her.

“Thank you for all the love and kindness you have shown us. Please keep Niamh, Michael St James, and our family in your thoughts and prayers.”

A representative told RTÉ she passed away peacefully at Beacon Hospital in Dublin following an illness.

Originally from Co Meath, Niamh O’Brien began Irish dancing at the age of three and competed professionally until she was 17, when she placed fourth in the world championships. 

She performed the lead role of ‘Saoirse’ in Flatley’s Lord of the Dance show. She also appeared in his shows Riverdance, Feet of Flames and Celtic Tiger. 

The couple married at St Patrick’s Church in Fermoy, Co Cork in 2006.

Their son, Michael St James, was born the following year. 

In an interview with the Irish Independent last year, Flatley spoke about what a support Niamh had been to him when he was undergoing treatment for cancer. 

“There were some wonderful nurses that were trying to help me, but they were invisible to me because of the pain, but I will never forget opening my eyes one of the times that I came to, and my wife was there,” he said.

“And my wife was smiling. Can you imagine the courage from my wife, to put on a smile in that position? The courage that took?”.