Glen Hansard’s Christmas Eve Busk: The Grafton Street Tradition He Gave Dublin

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For more than a decade, Christmas Eve in Dublin had a soundtrack. As the last shoppers hurried down Grafton Street, a crowd would gather around a man with a battered acoustic guitar, and before long some of the most famous musicians in the world would be standing beside him on the street, singing for people who had nowhere to sleep that night.

That man was Glen Hansard. This is the Christmas Eve busk, the tradition he gave Dublin.

How it started

Glen Hansard started out as a teenage busker on Grafton Street in the 1980s, long before The Frames, The Commitments, or the Oscar he won in 2008 for “Falling Slowly” from the film Once. Busking was where he learned his craft, and he never forgot it.

In 2010 he brought that back to the street where it all began. On Christmas Eve he stood on Grafton Street with a guitar and a bucket and played for the Dublin Simon Community, which supports people who are homeless or at risk of losing their homes. It became a tradition, and every year it grew.

Bono, Sinéad, Hozier and friends

The magic of the busk was that you never knew who would turn up. Over the years, Glen was joined on the street by Bono, Damien Rice, Lisa Hannigan, Sinéad O’Connor, Hozier, Imelda May, Dermot Kennedy, The Coronas, Gavin James and many others. Some years the crowd stretched back the length of the street. Some years the rain poured down and nobody went home.

The songs were a mix of Christmas classics, Irish favourites and whatever the crowd wanted to sing. In 2023, weeks after Shane MacGowan’s death, Glen led the street in a singalong of Pogues songs, including “Fairytale of New York”. During the pandemic, when crowds couldn’t gather, the busk moved online so the fundraising could go on.

Across the years, Dublin Simon says the busk has raised more than €2 million.

Remembering Glen Hansard

Glen Hansard died on 29 July 2026, aged 56, after a motorcycle accident in Dublin. Tributes poured in from around the world for a songwriter who never lost touch with the street, and many of them mentioned the same thing: Christmas Eve on Grafton Street.

He was famous for his huge voice and his old guitar, worn through with a hole from years of strumming. But he will be remembered just as much for what he did with that fame, standing in the cold every Christmas Eve, shoulder to shoulder with the biggest names in Irish music, so that people with nowhere to go might have somewhere to sleep.

How to support Dublin Simon this Christmas

The busk was always about one thing: the people the Dublin Simon Community helps. Whether or not you’re in Dublin this Christmas Eve, you can donate to Dublin Simon directly through the charity’s website. It’s what Glen would have wanted.

Christmas Eve busk FAQ

When did the Grafton Street Christmas Eve busk start?

Glen Hansard started it in 2010.

Who does the Christmas Eve busk raise money for?

The Dublin Simon Community, which helps people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.

Who has played at the Christmas Eve busk?

Bono, Sinéad O’Connor, Damien Rice, Hozier, Lisa Hannigan, Imelda May, Dermot Kennedy and The Coronas, among many others.

How much has the busk raised?

More than €2 million, according to Dublin Simon.

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Featured photo: Glen Hansard on stage, by Andy Witchger, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

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