The Cranberries fans slam Mexican tabloid for using ‘disgusting’ Dolores O'Riordan ‘Zombie’ pun in headline

A Mexican newspaper has come under fire for referring to the late Dolores O’Riordan as a “zombie” in a headline.

The Cranberries front woman was found dead in a London hotel room on Monday morning at the age of 46.

Mexican tabloid Metro is now facing a fierce backlash after it announced the news with the front page headline “Ya Es Zobi” which roughly translates as: “She’s a zombie.”

The publication was accused of showing a lack of respect over the “disgusting” play-on-words, which was a reference to the Cranberries’ 1994 hit, Zombie, about the murder of two children by the IRA.

One Twitter user posted: “What little tact and common sense.”

Another tweeted: “It shows that they do not care to listen or read what the lyrics are about.”

A third wrote: “How much do they pay you for these disgusting jokes? I hope it’s more than what their credibility is worth.”

Spanish daily Publico also slammed the headline, branding it the “the most offensive of the year”.

O’Riordan was found dead at the Park Lane Hotel. She had been in the capital to record a cover of Zombie with Bad Wolves.

The Irish singer had sounded “full of life” in a voicemail hours before her death, according to her friend and music producer Dan Waite.

Police have said her death is not being treated as suspicious and confirmed the case was being passed to a coroner.

Tributes flooded in from fellow musicians including Duran Duran, who said they had been left “crushed,” while her Cranberries bandmates said they were “devastated” at the loss of a “true artist”.

O’Riordan’s boyfriend Ole Koretsky, who played with her in alternative rock band D.A.R.K, said his “heart is broken and it is beyond repair”.