Nineties rock frontwoman tells fans she's 'alive' as she reveals 'major surgery' in post from hospital bed

The ROCK icon revealed she had major surgery just months after her band canceled their tour.

Garbage frontwoman Shirley Manson, 58, posted a picture from her hospital bed to update fans on her condition.

Garbage’s Shirley Manson had major surgeryCredit: Instagram

Rock chic Shirley at the festival in 1998. Credit: Getty

Garbage told fans they were “devastated” by the decision in a social media postCredit: Tom Farmer

With her mouth wide open, she flashed two peace signs and wrote: “I choose to remind myself, as I lay here trying to recover from major surgery, that there are still beautiful things in the world.”

“Animals, flowers, oceans, trees. I am very grateful to all the people who did their best to love me, take care of me, take care of me.

“I cling to their kindness, their thoughtfulness and care. I mostly spent the week in bed. I mostly doomscrolled.”

Another post saw her triumphantly declaring, “She’s alive.”

Manson was injured in the summer on a European tour, which put an end to Garbage’s live performances for the rest of the year.

In a post on social media, the band told fans they were “devastated” by the decision, adding: “You know we would have pushed through if we could.”

A statement released by the band on Instagram read: “It is with great and sincere regret that we announce the cancellation of all our remaining dates for the rest of the year, due to an injury Shirley sustained on our recent tour in Europe which will require surgery and rehabilitation to correct.

“This is not a decision we have taken lightly and we sincerely apologize to our amazing fans and promoters who support us.

“We look forward to playing for you all again in 2025. Sending you lots of love as always, stay kind.”

A number of fellow musicians responded to the post wishing Manson well, including Yeah Yeah Yeahs guitarist Nick Zinner, former Cramps guitarist Conga Powers and Bikini Kill singer Kathleen Hanna.

In response to the post, Powers wrote: “Health comes first, it has to. For a full recovery.”

Garbage was founded in 1994, when Scottish singer Manson met American bandmates Butch Vig, Duke Erikson and Steve Marker. They went on to have six UK top 10 singles and six UK top 10 albums.

Before joining the band, Butch produced Nirvana’s classic 1991 album Nevermind.

Something of a rarity, the group has kept its original line-up throughout its existence.

Garbage’s best-known songs include Stupid Girl, Only Happy When It Rains and the theme to the 1999 James Bond film, The World Is Not Enough.

Last year, Manson revealed how the band had to endure a barrage of criticism in the ’90s, telling the BBC: “We were criticized for not being a real band. To this day, people dismiss us as a ‘production band’. We got it in the neck from everybody, no matter what we did.”

She added: “We’ve somehow managed to build a career by refusing to listen to people,” says Manson. “We have, in supposed commas, a ‘bad attitude’, but that attitude has allowed us to carve out a niche for ourselves.”

The inspirational rocker also faced personal hardships during the band’s career. In her late twenties, her mother was diagnosed with Pick’s disease and died just 12 months later.

The neurodegenerative condition is an aggressive consequence of dementia, most often in people under 65 years of age.

Manson told the Guardian how her rescue dog, Veela, gave her great comfort afterwards.

She said: ‘”In real life, I struggled to come to terms with my mother’s death, but whenever I came home from work, she would be a Veela, dancing on her hind legs, demanding to be walked, to be fed, to be petted, slowly I began to recover.”