Shane MacGowan dead - latest: Pogues singer known for Fairytale of New York dies as tributes paid

His death comes one week after he was discharged from hospital

Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan dies aged 65

The Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan has died at the age of 65, just a week after he was discharged from hospital.

The news of his death was confirmed by his wife, Irish journalist and author Victoria Mary Clarke, who said in a statement: “Shane will always be the light that I hold before me and the measure of my dreams and the love of my life”.

Tributes have since flooded in, with Irish premier Leo Varadkar writing he had “beautifully captured the Irish experience”, while his former bandmate shared a black and white image of MacGowan smiling on stage.

Last week, it was announced he was being discharged from hospital ahead of his upcoming birthday on Christmas Day. In a post last Wednesday evening, his wife tweeted an image of him wearing a scarf and bobble hat, thanking the nursing staff for their support.

MacGowan revealed he was diagnosed with encephalitis last year in a video posted to social media on New Year’s Eve.

It is an uncommon but serious condition in which the brain becomes inflamed, according to the NHS website.

From the 1980s, he lead the Irish punk band The Pogues. The band are best known for their 1987 hit, the festive song “Fairytale Of New York”.

Key Points

• The Independent’s Shane MacGowan obituary
• ‘Shane MacGowan was so much more than a Christmas song’ - VOICES
• What is encephalitis? Viral illness MacGowan was diagnosed with that swells brain

[30 November 2023 12:25 · Holly Evans]

Full statement from MacGowan’s wife

On Thursday, his wife Victoria Mary Clarke shared a black and white photo of MacGowan from his younger years smoking and holding a wine glass in a joint post to her Instagram and her husband’s.

Alongside the post, she wrote: “I don’t know how to say this so I am just going to say it.

“Shane who will always be the light that I hold before me and the measure of my dreams and the love of my life and the most beautiful soul and beautiful angel and the sun and the moon and the start and end of everything that I hold dear has gone to be with Jesus and Mary and his beautiful mother Therese.

“I am blessed beyond words to have met him and to have loved him and to have been so endlessly and unconditionally loved by him and to have had so many years of life and love and joy and fun and laughter and so many adventures.

“There’s no way to describe the loss that I am feeling and the longing for just one more of his smiles that lit up my world.

“Thank you thank you thank you thank you for your presence in this world you made it so very bright and you gave so much joy to so many people with your heart and soul and your music.

“You will live in my heart forever. Rave on in the garden all wet with rain that you loved so much. You meant the world to me.”

[30 November 2023 12:16 · Holly Evans]

Shane MacGowan, shy and complex genius behind The Pogues, dies aged 65

Shane MacGowan, the shy, complex, brilliant frontman of Anglo-Irish band The Pogues, has died aged 65.

The news of his death was confirmed by his wife, Irish journalist and author Victoria Mary Clarke, who said in a statement: “Shane will always be the light that I hold before me and the measure of my dreams and the love of my life”.

For many years, one only had to look at MacGowan’s mouth to get an idea of his intemperate lifestyle. Writing for The Independent in 2015, journalist Richard Jinman described it as “a monument to rock’n’roll excess; a frightening cavity hollowed out by misadventure and misbehaviour”.

Read the full article here

[30 November 2023 12:12 · Holly Evans]

Welcome to our live coverage

Welcome to our live coverage as tributes flood in for The Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan, who has died at the age of 65.

We’ll be bringing you all the latest updates.