Shane MacGowan's wife says pal 'overdosed and died' on their living room floor

19 December 2023 , 06:44

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Shane MacGowan's wife says pal 'overdosed and died' on their living room floor

Shane MacGowan's widow has shared the moment a drug user died in their living room and claims that it would have happened more than once.

The Pogues frontman died last month following a lengthy bout of ill health, having recently been discharged from hospital. Following his devastating death, tributes poured out from across the world with Johnny Depp and Sir Bob Geldof reading a prayer at his funeral.

Since his death, Victoria Mary Clarke has said she is "doing fine" and feels Shane's presence "watching" her at all times. But speaking candidly, she has now discussed their time together, including Shane's battles with drug addiction.

Victoria Mary Clarke has opened up about her relationship with Shane MacGowan (FilmMagic)

Victoria previously opened up about Shane's battles, claiming he once took "100 tabs of acid per day," as she delivered the eulogy at his funeral earlier this month. In a new interview, she has opened up about the time the couple lived on a rundown council estate in London at the height of Shane's troubles.

Tragically, an individual took an overdose and died in their living room. However, Victoria says this wouldn't have been the only time that this had happened. "Oh, there's been plenty of that kind of stuff," she told The Guardian, before adding: "That wouldn't have been the only one.

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"Plenty of people dying all the time. There seemed to be a bit of an inevitability about that. And Shane always seemed to be the only one who was destined to survive. We all thought: 'Well, Shane will outlive everybody.'" But Shane's troubles became so bad that he was "forced" into the Priory for his addiction to heroin.

Shane MacGowan tragically died aged 65 on November 30 (TWITTER)

The late Pogues frontman previously battled a drug addiction (Getty Images)

Elsewhere, Victoria revealed tha their "connection deepened" after Shane gave up heroin at the turn of the century. Following his death, she admits that it's "hard to feel sad" due to the late Fairytale Of New York hitmaker being in a "blissful state" – despite the fact he believed he would never die.

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."

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.

Frank offers confidential advice about drugs and addiction (email [email protected], message 82111 or call 0300 123 6600) or the NHS has information about getting help.

Daniel Bird