Kirsty MacColl memorial bench

On the southern side of Soho Square in London, facing Greek Street, sits a wooden bench with a small plaque that reads: "Kirsty MacColl, 1959–2000. 'One day I'll be waiting there, no empty bench in Soho Square.'" The line is from her 1994 song "Soho Square," from the album Titanic Days — a quiet, bittersweet track about meeting someone in this exact garden, where "the pigeons shiver in the naked trees."

The bench was unveiled on 12 August 2001, funded by fans and admirers. MacColl had been killed eight months earlier, on 18 December 2000, while scuba diving with her two sons off the coast of Cozumel, Mexico. A speedboat entered the protected diving area at Chankanaab reef and struck her. She pushed one of her sons out of the path of the boat and was hit by the propeller. She was 41 years old.

The boat was owned by Mexican billionaire Guillermo González Nova. His deckhand, José Cen Yam, was convicted of culpable homicide and sentenced to two years and ten months in prison, though he avoided jail by paying a fine. There has long been speculation that González Nova himself was at the helm. A campaign for justice, supported by MacColl's family and fans, continued for years afterward.

MacColl's recording career spanned two decades. She is best known for her duet with Shane MacGowan on The Pogues' "Fairytale of New York" (1987), and for her own hits including "They Don't Know" (later covered by Tracey Ullman), "A New England" (a Billy Bragg cover), and the Latin-influenced album Tropical Brainstorm (2000), released just months before her death. She was the daughter of folk singer Ewan MacColl, who wrote "Dirty Old Town" and "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face."

Every year, on the Sunday nearest to MacColl's birthday on 10 October, fans gather at the bench for "Kirstyfest" — singing her songs, leaving flowers, and paying tribute. Soho Square is a small public garden in the middle of one of London's busiest districts, surrounded by offices and restaurants. The bench is easy to find and freely accessible at any time.