Shane McGowan’s widow recalls chaotic memories: “Some kind of actual destruction”
Shane MacGowan passed away peacefully in hospital from pneumonia on 30th November. He was still young at 65 years old, and his funeral took place on 8th December in Nenagh, County Tipperary.
Since his passing, many tributes have come from artists such as Nick Cave, Bruce Springsteen and Ian Prowse, all of whom commended him as a prolific songwriter and man. In a recent interview, his widow, Victoria Mary Clarke, opened up about some of the more challenging aspects of the singer’s life and their time together.
MacGowan had a life of alcohol and substance abuse, all of which took a toll on his health, both physically and emotionally. Clarke stated that often, they were “living very much on the edge of some kind of destruction.”
“He would do crazy things,” she said, “like take 100 tabs of acid in a day then jump out of the window of a moving taxi, or paint himself blue… He would quite often set fire to things. He set fire to hotel rooms that we stayed in – while we were in them – because of the acid.”
She recalled moments when she would come home and find him in bed with groupies. “I would be absolutely furious,” she said, “and I would punch him and run out and say, ‘Right, that’s it – I’m never coming back!’”
Still, the couple stayed with each other until the end, with Clarke being the person to announce his passing to the world. “I’d get to my own flat and just wouldn’t be able to stay away. I would always come back. I think he just knew that.”
Read more of the tributes that poured in for Shane MacGowan after his passing here.
