Brow Beat

Bono Shares the Real Reason He Always Wears Sunglasses: Glaucoma

We’re probably all guilty of cracking a joke at Bono’s omnipresent sunglasses at least once or twice. They’ve been a fashion staple of the U2 frontman for two decades—and now we know why: In an appearance on The Graham Norton Show, after being asked if he ever takes them off, Bono finally explained he wears them so much because he has glaucoma, an eye disease that can cause blindness. He has had it for the last 20 years.

In the interview, he seemed a little wary of the potential for pity: “You’re not going to get this out of your head now,” he said, “and you will be saying ‘Ah, poor old blind Bono.’ ” But he says he’ll be fine, so carry on with your jokes.