A FORMER teacher of singer Sinead O'Connor has said she was one of the most special people he has ever had in his life, outside of his own family.

Joe Falvey, a former teacher of the late singer at Newtown School, spoke of his sadness at the news of the death of the 56-year-old, who was found unresponsive in a dwelling in London yesterday.

Joe and Sinead had a very special connection as Sinead had publicly credited him for encouraging her music career when she was 16 and making it possible for her to pursue her dreams.

She singled him out again in more recent years on Twitter and this morning (Wed) as news of her death continued to send shockwaves, Joe was in studio for Deise Today to talk about his connection to one of Ireland's most successful music stars ever.

Local musician Liam Merriman and also music promoter Mick O'Keeffe also reminisced about their experiences and memories of Sinead.

And you can listen back to it all (including a very special original music demo from Sinead's very early days singing!), by clicking on the image above!