Shane MacGowan’s wife reveals his cause of death – after The Pogues star passed away aged 65 following eight-year battle with brain condition

Shane MacGowan's wife today revealed that The Pogues star has died from pneumonia after battling a brain condition for eight years.

MacGowan, 65, had been battling viral encephalitis and was released from hospital last week. He died in the early hours of Thursday morning.

The New York Times reports that his wife, Victoria Mary Clarke, confirmed the cause of death as pneumonia. She did not say where he died.

Funeral details are yet to be confirmed for The Pogues frontman, whose death was announced in a heartbreaking statement on The Pogues' social media accounts on behalf of the band and his wife, sister Siobhan and father Maurice.

The death prompted an outpouring of tributes from famous faces and Pogues fans – and has revived a campaign to make The Pogues' best-known song, Fairytale of New York, the Christmas number one in Britain.

It read: 'It is with the deepest sadness and heaviest hearts that we announce the passing of Shane MacGowan.

'Shane died peacefully at 3am (November 30, 2023) with his wife Victoria and family by his side.

'Prayers and the reading of the last rites were given which brought comfort to his family.

'He is survived by his wife Victoria, his sister Siobhan and his father Maurice, family and a large circle of friends.

'Further details will be announced shortly, but the family requests privacy at this very sad time.'

Victoria later shared more tributes to her husband, who she married in Copenhagen, Denmark, in December 2018 on social media.

She shared an image of MacGowan smiling on X, formerly Twitter, and captioned it: “Gonna miss him so much! His smile, his eyes, his laugh, his sense of humor and his voice, every little part of him.”

This is a groundbreaking story, more to come.