Victoria Mary Clarke, the wife of The Pogues lead singer Shane MacGowan, has announced that her husband has died at the age of 65 on Thursday (November 30).
MacGowan died after a prolonged period of ill health. He was recently discharged from Dublin's St. Vincent's Hospital a few days before his death after receiving treatment for an infection.
"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," Clarke said in an Instagram post.
MacGowan had grappled with multiple health issues in recent years and used a wheelchair since breaking his pelvis in 2015, CNN reported.
Who was Shane MacGowan?
Born in Kent, England in 1957 to Irish parents, MacGowan spent his summers in a farmhouse in southern Ireland, which exposed him to traditional Irish music.
In 1982, he formed The Pogues with Peter "Spider" Stacy, Jem Finer, and James Fearnley as a band with an Irish-punk blend.
The band went on to release a string of successful albums and singles, the best known of which being the 1988 Christmas hit "Fairytale of New York," which also featured English singer Kirsty MacColl.
The song was recently covered and given a twist by the Kelce brothers - Jason and Travis - as part of its Christmas album "A Philly Special Christmas."
Sorry to hear that Shane McGowan has passed. He was an amazing musician and artist. His songs beautifully captured the Irish experience, especially the experience of being Irish abroad: Shane MacGowan, Fairytale of New York singer, dies aged 65https://t.co/eNmP7AySfW
— Leo Varadkar (@LeoVaradkar) November 30, 2023
Ireland Remembers MacGowan
Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar was one of the first to pay tribute to the Anglo-Irish musician.
"Sorry to hear that Shane McGowan has passed. He was an amazing musician and artist," he said. "His songs beautifully captured the Irish experience, especially the experience of being Irish abroad."
Irish President Michael Higgins also commended MacGowan's rich body of work, saying that he "would be remembered as one of music's greatest lyricists."
"His words have connected Irish people all over the globe to their culture and history, encompassing so many human emotions in the most poetic of ways," he added.
