Sinead O'Connor saved Shane MacGowan's life by calling the police on him

30 November 2023 , 13:43

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Sinead O'Connor once saved Shane MacGowan's life (Image: Redferns)

Sinead O'Connor once saved her close friend Shane MacGowan's life with an important phone call.

The Nothing Compares 2 U singer and The Pogues frontman were friends for years and even duetted together on the song Haunted. Shane's wife Victoria Mary Clarke once said he regarded Sinead as "like a sister" and was "devastated" to miss her funeral earlier this year.

Shane, who sadly died aged 65 on Thursday, even credited Sinead with helping him tackle his addiction to heroin. Back in 2000, Sinead decided to report Shane to the police in an attempt to discourage her friend from using drugs. It resulted in him being charged with drug possession after police found a small amount of heroin on the late singer.

Close friends Shane and Sinead once discussed death in a 1995 interview

The charges were eventually discontinued at Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court in London. Sinead later admitted she made the decision after she found Shane collapsed on the floor of his home. “I love Shane, and it makes me angry to see him destroy himself selfishly in front of those who love him,” she recalled at the time.

Sinead also sadly died earlier this year in July. Shane and his wife Victoria paid a heartfelt tribute to the Irish singer as they wrote: "We don't really have words for this but we want to thank you Sinead. For your love and your friendship and your compassion and your humour and your incredible music. We pray that you are at peace now with your beautiful boy. Love Victoria and Shane.”

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Shane, who spent recent years in and out of hospital with various health issues, was unable to make Sinead's funeral in August. Victoria attended the private funeral instead, and told the Irish Sunday Mirror: “Shane was in hospital and was devastated he couldn’t be there, because she was like a sister to him.

“She was always incredibly caring... she had a very motherly energy. Some people are very in their heads, but she was very much in her heart.” Sinead was found dead at her London flat on July 26. She lost her son Shane, 17, to suicide in 2021. The Fairytale of New York singer's death was announced today, with Victoria saying : "Shane will always be the light that I hold before me and the measure of my dreams and the love of my life".

As fans reminisce about both Sinead and Shane's legacy, an old clip of them discussing death with Pat Kenny in 1995 made its rounds on social media. The duo made an appearance on the show to promote their song, Haunted, which was written for the 1986 movie Sid and Nancy. The movie focused on the turbulent relationship between Sex Pistols star Sid Vicious and his girlfriend Nancy Spungen.

Shane knew Sid and Nancy and said the song was "happy in a way cos they’re reunited somewhere else." Sinead then opened up about her own mortality and added: "What are we all doing here, how does the earth hang in space and what’s going to happen to me when I die, is it going to be slow and painful? But I think if you get through birth which is the most difficult passage then death is surely a breeze."

Mia O'Hare