Shane MacGowan's widow Victoria Mary Clarke has expressed how she’s “going to miss him so much” after his death aged 65.
The Irish singer, best known for hit festive song Fairytale Of New York, died “peacefully” at 3am on Thursday with his wife and family by his side, a statement from his relatives said.
MacGowan was discharged last week from St Vincent’s Hospital in Dublin ahead of his 66th birthday on Christmas Day.
He had revealed he was diagnosed with encephalitis last year in a video posted to social media on New Year’s Eve. It is is an uncommon but serious condition in which the brain becomes inflamed, according to the NHS website.
Following his passing, Clarke took X, formerly known as Twitter, to post several photos of her with MacGowan throughout the years.
The journalist first penned alongside a photo of the singer: “I am going to miss him so much! His smile, his eyes, his laugh, his sense of humour and his voice, every little part of him.”
She then went on to post a photo of the pair sharing a kiss, adding: “In the hospital the nurses kept asking why he was covered in lipstick.
“If you get to meet your soulmate please do let love in even if you have to suffer loss.”
MacGowan and Clarke had been together for more than 35 years.
They tied the knot in a small ceremony in Copenhagen, Denmark, in 2018 in front of guests including Hollywood star Johnny Depp.
In the hospital the nurses kept asking why he was covered in lipstick. If you get to meet your soulmate please do let love in even if you have to suffer loss pic.twitter.com/iGkDpbQoJK
— @victoriamary (@Victoriamary) December 1, 2023
MacGowan was born on Christmas Day 1957 in Pembury, Kent, to his mother Therese, who was a Feis Ceoil singer, and father Maurice.
From the 1980s, he lead the Irish punk band The Pogues who are best known for their hit festive song Fairytale Of New York which was released in 1987.
MacGowan, who has used a wheelchair since he broke his pelvis in 2015, has been in and out of hospital in recent years.
