Village grieves for Pogues' MacGowan

FORMER Pogues singer Shane MacGowan, who died on November 30th will be fondly remembered in West Cork, where he had strong connections, as his wife Victoria Mary Clarke spent much of her childhood at Renaniree outside Macroom.

The writer of such anthemic songs like Rainy Night in Soho and Fairytale of New York married the journalist and writer in Copenhagen in 2018. They first met when Victoria emigrated from Cork to London when she was 16 and they met on the music scene there.

She spoke to Brendan O’Connor on RTÉ Radio 1 recently, recalling her time growing up near Macroom, where her sister still resides. Shane had been battling a viral encephalitis diagnosis which he received last year and had been in a wheelchair in recent years following a fall, where he fractured his pelvis.

Victoria Mary’s sister, Jenny Rose, runs the popular Toonsbridge Dairy with her husband Toby Simmonds. Jenny Rose also established the popular Real Olive Company stall in the English Market in Cork.

While Shane and the Pogues never played gigs in West Cork, they played their first city gig in Sir Henry’s in 1986 and were joined onstage by Elvis Costello. They followed that with another appearance at Siamsa Cois Laoí in Páirc Uí Chaoimh, along with the Wolfe Tones and Status Quo. Their last appearance in Cork was at Cork City Hall in 1989.

In recent years, The Pogues teamed up with Skibbereen drinks firm West Cork Distillers to launch their own Irish whiskey – The Pogues Irish Whiskey – into the UK market and attended the launch in London.

In the wake of Shane’s death, music fans across the world are now pushing for the band’s iconic Fairytale of New York song to reach No 1 this Christmas to honour the talented signer, who would have been 66 on Christmas Day. An album of music which he recorded before his death is expected to be released in the near future.