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Dublin Live
08-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Dublin Live
Doctors told Shane MacGowan he'd die six months after meeting widow Victoria Mary Clarke
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info Shane MacGowan's widow has told how doctors told The Pogues frontman he would die within six months of the pair getting together back in the 1980s. Victoria Mary Clarke and Shane met over 40 years ago, before tying the knot in Copenhagen in 2018. But Victoria was dealt a devastating blow when the Tipperary star passed away in November 2023 at the age of 65 after multiple health complications. However, she admitted she had been preparing since the 80s for his death after many doctors gave the rock star only months to live, even back then. Speaking on The Grief Pod with Venetia Quick, Victoria said: "It was quite often that he would be told he would be dead soon. And that started when we got together. "So starting in the 80s, people told me he'd be dead very soon. I remember, like, pretty much as soon as we got together, somebody said, 'Oh, well, he'll be dead in six months'. "A doctor that we used to go to in London, she told Shane that he would be dead in six months, and she is now dead herself. Well, in fact, two of his doctors are dead, having told Shane that he would be dead. So, you know, it was definitely on my mind a lot, and it was something that I was afraid of very much. "And when I thought about it, I couldn't picture anything but misery. I couldn't picture anything but total despair." Shane died in November 2023 and Victoria opened up about how she has coped with the grief since The Fairytale of New York hitmaker's passing. "There's been plenty of days like that, where I've been phoning the Samaritans and I have fully felt that I wanted to end it all," she explained. But she said she has recently qualified as a sound healer and used the power of sound and meditation to help her cope with grief. "I'm sure anyone who's listening, who's familiar with grief, will notice that it does heighten emotion and it dysregulates the nervous system," she added. "So you're kind of all over the place, and you're panicked, and you haven't got clear thoughts. And you feel very vulnerable. You feel very fragile. "Yeah, you feel like your emotions are running you. You can't really stop them. So there's a lot of turbulence. So it is a bit like being thrown in the sea with a lot of waves crashing around. And then you really have to kind of discipline yourself to remember this is just turbulence, and underneath, at the bottom of the ocean, there is a calm, still place, and I've got to try and get there. "Recently, I just qualified as a sound healer, so I find that sound is one of the most powerful... but also really fast to bring me into a state of total calm, and it's faster than Valium. I've tried Valium and Xanax, and actually using a gong is faster. So I'm doing things like that." But Victoria said she still talks to the 65-year-old every day since his passing, admitting she feels Shane's presence all around her. And she told the host that he is happy in the afterlife, adding: "He's happy, and he does talk to me, and he does tell me many times. He's told me many times, so I'm aware of that, and it does help, because I know that he really, really had a lot of pain and suffering and struggle with his body, so it is a relief for him. He's out of it. "I do tell [talk to] him, and I feel he is there. So I suppose that's one of the things that's maybe in my toolbox in that I have had an interest in the non-physical or the spiritual since I was a kid. "So I started talking to light-beings and fairies and, you know, trees and all these things as a child. And I became interested in channelling in my 20s, and I've been channelling for about 30 years, so sometimes I'll channel people who have been human. Like most of the time, I channel light beings and angels who've never been human. "But now occasionally I'll be channelling people as well. And so I was always aware that if anything happened to one of us, the other one would still be able to communicate with them, because we'd just carry on the conversation like channelling. And, you know, that's not so easy to do with somebody that you're very attached to emotionally. It's much easier to do with somebody you've never met. But with Shane, it's a little bit more, you know, intense, but he's very determined. So he finds every possible opportunity. "He comes through in writing mainly, or he'll just put a thought in my head, or he'll try and, like, dance with me, and he'll, like, move me or he'll send energy to me so I can feel the energy that it's sending. Or he will come through other people. So he comes through psychic mediums that I go to, but he also comes through friends. "You know, a couple of my friends recently have said, 'Oh my god, Shane is bashing me on the shoulder and going tell her this'. And they're like, why is he trying to talk through me?' "And I guess he just will talk through anyone who will listen," she added. But Victoria said she finds it comforting to know he is still around her. "I know that he's aware of me, and I know that he can, like, see me, and if I write to him, I know that he can see and read what I've written, and so that that is good, and it's not the same as your physical person, and it's not the same as feeling them or hearing their voice or any of those things." Victoria also mentioned how her late husband would've enjoyed "the fuss" of his funeral. "It was something that he would have enjoyed, and I know he was enjoying it. I mean, I think he was really, really enjoying the whole thing, all the fuss, because Shane was a guy who really loved people, and he loved to connect with people," she said. And she admitted that MacGowan being a public figure has helped her cope with his death. She said: "I was, in some ways, very fortunate that Shane was a public figure, because it meant that his death was acknowledged. "I think that for anyone listening, who has lost somebody, or is feeling, like, bereft or bereaved, that, you know, when other people do even a small gesture, like, you know, doing a mass card, or a bunch of flowers or whatever it is, I think every gesture helps." Join our Dublin Live breaking news service on WhatsApp. Click this link to receive your daily dose of Dublin Live content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice . For all the latest news from Dublin and surrounding areas visit our homepage.
Irish Daily Mirror
08-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Daily Mirror
Shane MacGowan's widow 'still talks' to singer every day since his death
Shane MacGowan's widow has told how doctors told The Pogues frontman he would die within six months of the pair getting together – back in the 1980s. Victoria Mary Clarke and Shane met over 40 years ago before tying the knot in Copenhagen in 2018. But Victoria was dealt a devastating blow when the Tipperary star passed away in November 2023 at the age of 65 after multiple health complications. However, she admitted she had been preparing since the 80s for his death after many doctors gave the rock star only months to live, even back then. Speaking on The Grief Pod with Venetia Quick, Victoria said: 'It was quite often that he would be told he would be dead soon. And that started when we got together. 'So starting in the 80s, people told me he'd be dead very soon. 'I remember, like, pretty much as soon as we got together, somebody said, 'Oh, well, he'll be dead in six months'. 'A doctor that we used to go to in London, she told Shane that he would be dead in six months, and she is now dead herself. 'Well, in fact, two of his doctors are dead, having told Shane that he would be dead. So, you know, it was definitely on my mind a lot, and it was something that I was afraid of very much. 'And when I thought about it, I couldn't picture anything but misery. I couldn't picture anything but total despair.' Shane died in November 2023 and Victoria opened up about how she has coped with the grief since The Fairytale of New York hitmaker's passing. 'There's been plenty of days like that, where I've been phoning the Samaritans and I have fully felt that I wanted to end it all,' she explained. But she said she has recently qualified as a sound healer and used the power of sound and meditation to help her cope with grief. 'I'm sure anyone who's listening, who's familiar with grief, will notice that it does heighten emotion and it dysregulates the nervous system,' she added. 'So you're kind of all over the place, and you're panicked, and you haven't got clear thoughts. And you feel very vulnerable. You feel very fragile. 'Yeah, you feel like your emotions are running you. You can't really stop them. So there's a lot of turbulence. So it is a bit like being thrown in the sea with a lot of waves crashing around. And then you really have to kind of discipline yourself to remember this is just turbulence, and underneath, at the bottom of the ocean, there is a calm, still place, and I've got to try and get there. 'Recently, I just qualified as a sound healer, so I find that sound is one of the most powerful... but also really fast to bring me into a state of total calm, and it's faster than Valium. 'I've tried Valium and Xanax, and actually using a gong is faster. So I'm doing things like that.' But Victoria said she still talks to the 65-year-old every day since his passing, admitting she feels Shane's presence all around her. And she told the host that he is happy in the afterlife, adding: 'He's happy, and he does talk to me, and he does tell me many times. He's told me many times, so I'm aware of that, and it does help, because I know that he really, really had a lot of pain and suffering and struggle with his body, so it is a relief for him. He's out of it. 'I do tell [talk to] him, and I feel he is there. So I suppose that's one of the things that's maybe in my toolbox in that I have had an interest in the non-physical or the spiritual since I was a kid. 'So I started talking to light-beings and fairies and, you know, trees and all these things as a child. 'And I became interested in channelling in my 20s, and I've been channelling for about 30 years, so sometimes I'll channel people who have been human. Like most of the time, I channel light beings and angels who've never been human. 'But now occasionally I'll be channelling people as well. And so I was always aware that if anything happened to one of us, the other one would still be able to communicate with them, because we'd just carry on the conversation like channelling. 'And, you know, that's not so easy to do with somebody that you're very attached to emotionally. It's much easier to do with somebody you've never met. But with Shane, it's a little bit more, you know, intense, but he's very determined. So he finds every possible opportunity. 'He comes through in writing mainly, or he'll just put a thought in my head, or he'll try and, like, dance with me, and he'll, like, move me or he'll send energy to me so I can feel the energy that it's sending. 'Or he will come through other people. So he comes through psychic mediums that I go to, but he also comes through friends. 'You know, a couple of my friends recently have said, 'Oh my god, Shane is bashing me on the shoulder and going tell her this'. And they're like, why is he trying to talk through me?' 'And I guess he just will talk through anyone who will listen,' she added. But Victoria said she finds it comforting to know he is still around her. 'I know that he's aware of me, and I know that he can, like, see me, and if I write to him, I know that he can see and read what I've written, and so that that is good, and it's not the same as your physical person, and it's not the same as feeling them or hearing their voice or any of those things.' Victoria also mentioned how her late husband would've enjoyed 'the fuss' of his funeral. 'It was something that he would have enjoyed, and I know he was enjoying it. I mean, I think he was really, really enjoying the whole thing, all the fuss, because Shane was a guy who really loved people, and he loved to connect with people,' she said. And she admitted that MacGowan being a public figure has helped her cope with his death. She said: 'I was, in some ways, very fortunate that Shane was a public figure, because it meant that his death was acknowledged. 'I think that for anyone listening, who has lost somebody, or is feeling, like, bereft or bereaved, that, you know, when other people do even a small gesture, like, you know, doing a mass card, or a bunch of flowers or whatever it is, I think every gesture helps.'
The National
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The National
Taggart star 'couldn't be happier' with new career in music
'Someone who was in the audience said they overheard someone near them saying: 'Aw, they years in Taggart an' she never sang once',' says the actor, fresh from her run as the scene-stealing mother to Dawn Sievewright's Roselynn in the hit stage production of Wild Rose at the Edinburgh Lyceum, where the quip was spilled. 'But actually that's not quite true. I was singing in a choir in my very first episode of Taggart.' That debut performance on STV's famous police drama may not have forced her to consider how she'd define herself, however it's a question she has waited a long time to be asked. 'I've been 21 years in Taggart and 21 in the theatre. But the amount of people who have said to me: 'I didn't know you could sing.' I suppose at a certain point in your life it's very hard to be revelatory because people know who you are, but I've always sung, just not in public. People have grown up with you, brought their kids up with you, and they just think: 'That's her from Taggart'. I'm totally happy with that.' She's happy to challenge it, too. Duff might have been a singer but she didn't have a platform to show it. As the woman from the stalls at the Lyceum observed, the singing detective she wasn't. Then came Christmas 2020. In the middle of the pandemic, with the impending strain of families held apart by socially distanced Christmas restrictions, she and Fife songwriter Cameron Barnes recorded a version of The Fairytale of New York, which transposed the context of Shane MacGowan and Kirsty MacColl's battling Manhattan lovers into a mother and son held apart by the government response to a global virus. Incredibly, their Pogues cover – a tearjerker ripe for the aggravated emotion of the time – scored a Top Ten position in the UK download chart, landing at No 6. 'I suppose that allowed folk into that part of my world,' she says, of becoming chart singer in her late 50s. 'But now that I have been singing with this band, I just love it,' she says. This band is Lacunas Music Society, an experimental collaboration between Duff and composer Malcolm Lindsay, with Inverclyde folk singer Yvonne Lyon. Lacunas means gap, the resonance between unfulfilled and realised ambition perhaps unintentional. The trio share lead vocals, harmonies and spoken word deliveries over layers of atmospheric soundscape. Having performed together just once, in Glasgow last November – a performance of music and complementary visuals so beguiling it belied any notion of debut – they'll embark on a mini-tour of Scotland in coming weeks, with an album due for release at the end of the summer. 'I like the fact that it's more a music society than a band,' laughs Duff. 'It's not so easy to pin down what our show is and I quite like it for that. It takes on the best parts of what we each do and I think that's what's lovely about it – we can be inspired by each other's world.' The experience has been as revelatory for her collaborators. Lyon had been a long time fan of Lindsay's compositions and met him at a memorial gig for a friend. 'I loved his album Solitary Citizen. We got talking about music at the memorial and it went from there. I really wanted to explore layers of composition,' says the Greenock-based singer, who juggled this project and another separate collaboration with Boo Hewerdine. (Image: Lacunas Music Society) 'Then when Malcolm said Blythe was interested I was star struck again. I grew up watching Taggart and she was one of the first strong female characters in my psyche, a big image in my mind growing up. It was exciting to get into a room and make some music together. She carries storytelling in her vocal performance so well.' For musician Lindsay, the connection with Duff dates to his time as a composer on Taggart, although they only met towards the end of the series' decades-long run. 'You'd be staring at the actors and actresses for six or eight weeks, so you feel like you know them,' he says. 'I had no idea Blythe wanted to do music. I didn't know her well enough to know she was musical. It was a very pleasant surprise to find out. You might think Blythe coming from an acting background into music means she would be a lesser player but it's the opposite. She's as much an influence as Yvonne or I which is a nice surprise. 'She brings a totally different attitude to the performance.' The project will return Duff to Edinburgh's live stage weeks after her acclaimed turn in Wild Rose, the musical version of Glasgow writer Nicole Taylor's stirring Britflick starring Julie Walters and Jessie Buckley. With the stage show widely expected to tour (it was originally conceived as a possible opener at the refurbished Citizen's in Glasgow until date clashes scuppered the plan), Duff is likely to be back on stage alongside Sievewright and Louise McCarthy soon. 'There's no three ways about it, the singers on Wild Rose are big singers who can belt it out with extraordinary range,' she says. 'I know I'm not that so I have to find the right platform with the right songs and with people who understand I am an actress who enjoys singing.' With Lacunas Music Society, she might just have found it, finally playing the role she always wanted: the singer in a band. 'I like the fact that it seems to be a revelation for folk,' she says. 'I'm fortunate the people I have been able to be in tow with have so many things they bring to the party. The more I sing, the more folk ask me to and I'm quite enjoying that. Maybe that's an ego thing but if people are having a good time and saying it for the right reasons then I'm tickled pink. I really couldn't be happier.' Love Loss Data by Lacunas Music Society is released in September. They play Edinburgh's Traverse on June 12, Glasgow's Cottiers on June 26 and Birnam Arts, Dunkeld, on June 28.
The Herald Scotland
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
Taggart star 'couldn't be happier' with new career in music
'But actually that's not quite true. I was singing in a choir in my very first episode of Taggart.' That debut performance on STV's famous police drama may not have forced her to consider how she'd define herself, however it's a question she has waited a long time to be asked. 'I've been 21 years in Taggart and 21 in the theatre. But the amount of people who have said to me: 'I didn't know you could sing.' I suppose at a certain point in your life it's very hard to be revelatory because people know who you are, but I've always sung, just not in public. People have grown up with you, brought their kids up with you, and they just think: 'That's her from Taggart'. I'm totally happy with that.' She's happy to challenge it, too. Duff might have been a singer but she didn't have a platform to show it. As the woman from the stalls at the Lyceum observed, the singing detective she wasn't. Then came Christmas 2020. In the middle of the pandemic, with the impending strain of families held apart by socially distanced Christmas restrictions, she and Fife songwriter Cameron Barnes recorded a version of The Fairytale of New York, which transposed the context of Shane MacGowan and Kirsty MacColl's battling Manhattan lovers into a mother and son held apart by the government response to a global virus. Incredibly, their Pogues cover – a tearjerker ripe for the aggravated emotion of the time – scored a Top Ten position in the UK download chart, landing at No 6. 'I suppose that allowed folk into that part of my world,' she says, of becoming chart singer in her late 50s. 'But now that I have been singing with this band, I just love it,' she says. This band is Lacunas Music Society, an experimental collaboration between Duff and composer Malcolm Lindsay, with Inverclyde folk singer Yvonne Lyon. Lacunas means gap, the resonance between unfulfilled and realised ambition perhaps unintentional. The trio share lead vocals, harmonies and spoken word deliveries over layers of atmospheric soundscape. Having performed together just once, in Glasgow last November – a performance of music and complementary visuals so beguiling it belied any notion of debut – they'll embark on a mini-tour of Scotland in coming weeks, with an album due for release at the end of the summer. 'I like the fact that it's more a music society than a band,' laughs Duff. 'It's not so easy to pin down what our show is and I quite like it for that. It takes on the best parts of what we each do and I think that's what's lovely about it – we can be inspired by each other's world.' The experience has been as revelatory for her collaborators. Lyon had been a long time fan of Lindsay's compositions and met him at a memorial gig for a friend. 'I loved his album Solitary Citizen. We got talking about music at the memorial and it went from there. I really wanted to explore layers of composition,' says the Greenock-based singer, who juggled this project and another separate collaboration with Boo Hewerdine. (Image: Lacunas Music Society) 'Then when Malcolm said Blythe was interested I was star struck again. I grew up watching Taggart and she was one of the first strong female characters in my psyche, a big image in my mind growing up. It was exciting to get into a room and make some music together. She carries storytelling in her vocal performance so well.' For musician Lindsay, the connection with Duff dates to his time as a composer on Taggart, although they only met towards the end of the series' decades-long run. 'You'd be staring at the actors and actresses for six or eight weeks, so you feel like you know them,' he says. 'I had no idea Blythe wanted to do music. I didn't know her well enough to know she was musical. It was a very pleasant surprise to find out. You might think Blythe coming from an acting background into music means she would be a lesser player but it's the opposite. She's as much an influence as Yvonne or I which is a nice surprise. 'She brings a totally different attitude to the performance.' The project will return Duff to Edinburgh's live stage weeks after her acclaimed turn in Wild Rose, the musical version of Glasgow writer Nicole Taylor's stirring Britflick starring Julie Walters and Jessie Buckley. With the stage show widely expected to tour (it was originally conceived as a possible opener at the refurbished Citizen's in Glasgow until date clashes scuppered the plan), Duff is likely to be back on stage alongside Sievewright and Louise McCarthy soon. 'There's no three ways about it, the singers on Wild Rose are big singers who can belt it out with extraordinary range,' she says. 'I know I'm not that so I have to find the right platform with the right songs and with people who understand I am an actress who enjoys singing.' With Lacunas Music Society, she might just have found it, finally playing the role she always wanted: the singer in a band. 'I like the fact that it seems to be a revelation for folk,' she says. 'I'm fortunate the people I have been able to be in tow with have so many things they bring to the party. The more I sing, the more folk ask me to and I'm quite enjoying that. Maybe that's an ego thing but if people are having a good time and saying it for the right reasons then I'm tickled pink. I really couldn't be happier.' Love Loss Data by Lacunas Music Society is released in September. They play Edinburgh's Traverse on June 12, Glasgow's Cottiers on June 26 and Birnam Arts, Dunkeld, on June 28.
