Extraordinary singing sensation Susan Boyle... Click here for photo gallery

Has Susan Boyle had her 15 minutes of fame? Join the discussion

TV sensation Susan Boyle yesterday revealed to Oprah that singing has helped her endure the loss of her Irish mother, Bridget.

"My mom died two years ago," she told Oprah from her home in Scotland and "after that, there was a wee period where I didn't sing.

"You try and keep going through that pain and that's what I try to do with my singing. I am very slowly getting over it. One of the reasons I applied to the TV show was to see if I could perform in front of an audience."

And perform she did, on the TV show, "Britain's Got Talent," where she blew away American Idol host Simon Cowell along with the audience with her version of "I Dreamed a Dream" from "Les Miserables."

Her performance has now been seen 100 million times on YouTube and she's become one of the most well-known people in the world.

But Susan, whose parents Bridget and Patrick both came from Ireland, seems to be taking it in her stride and she told Oprah she's loving every second!

"Pretty awesome to be recognized in the street and asked for autographs. I'm getting quite a few fan letters and cards from around the globe. I'm loving every second of it."

"It takes a bit of time to take in because it happened so quickly," she laughed. "I'm really enjoying every second of it. It's like a dream come true."