Shane MacGowan was 'bored' of Fairytale of New York hit, says his wife
The Pogues' Fairytale of New York is in the race for this year’s Christmas number one as fans try to pay a fitting tribute to Shane MacGowan but his wife says he grew tired of the iconic festive tune.
The Irish rocker passed away last month at the age of 65 and heartbroken music fans want his legendary hit to top the charts at the weekend to set the record straight. The 1987 track, which was a duet with the late Kirsty MacColl, has never made it to the top spot and missed out on hitting number one the year it was released by the Pet Shop Boys' cover of Always On My Mind.
Bookmakers believe it is two-horse race between Wham!'s Last Christmas and The Pogues' favourite, but while saying her husband didn't want to be remembered for just that song, she said he would have loved the movement to get him to the top of the Christmas music tree.
Since Shane MacGowan’s death, fans have been on a quest to make Fairytale of New York this year’s Christmas No 1 (Mark Large/ANL/REX/Shutterstock)Victoria Mary Clarke said: “I think he was just bored with people focusing on that one song, because he was like, well, I’ve written so many other ones." Asked by The Guardian if he would have appreciated a chart-topper now for the tale of a couple airing their grievances on Christmas Eve, she said: “I think he probably would.”
Recently, she explained it was "hard to feel sad" about Shane's death and believes he's in a "blissful state". Speaking to Anita Rani on BBC's Radio 4's Woman's Hour, she said: "Shane is very much with me, I don't feel he's gone, when I look at his picture, I feel him smiling at me. And I actually feel a real smile, a real genuine connection. I feel his love and that connection very strongly. It's very hard to feel sad about it, even though I do sometimes burst into tears for my own loss, I can't feel sad for him because I really feel like he's in a very blissful state."
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But his wife said he wasn't just about that one legendary song (Instagram)Shane died of pneumonia in Dublin at the age of 65 on November 30. The Rainy Night in Soho singer was hospitalised in 2022 with shingles and viral encephalitis, a severe condition that causes inflammation of the brain, before being admitted to the ICU last summer.
Fans of Shane have taken to social media to encourage others to download or stream Fairytale of New York, and many have suggested it would be the perfect tribute to the late musician. “Only one option for Christmas no1 this year. Fairytale Of New York needs to be #1 in honour of Shane,” one wrote on X. “Fairytale of New York will forever be the greatest Christmas song of all time. This Christmas it will be especially poignant. Lets make it the Christmas Number one.”
Speaking about their 2018 wedding in Copenhagen after the couple rekindled their romance following another separation, Victoria said Shane was on time "because by that stage he had changed very much. He calmed down, and he began to do what I asked him to do." She went on to tell The Guardian : "He gave up smoking, he gave up heroin. The only fight we ever had after the wedding was about him doing his physio! He really mellowed. And our connection deepened."
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