Shane Patrick Lysaght MacGowan was born on 25 December 1957 and is an Irish singer-songwriter.
36 Facts About Shane MacGowan
2.
Shane MacGowan is best known as the lead singer and songwriter of Celtic punk band the Pogues.
3.
Shane MacGowan was a member of the Nipple Erectors and Shane MacGowan and the Popes, as well as producing his own solo material and collaborating with artists such as Kirsty MacColl, Joe Strummer, Nick Cave, Steve Earle, Sinead O'Connor, and Ronnie Drew.
4.
Shane MacGowan's father was from Dublin and his mother was from Tipperary.
5.
Shane MacGowan spent childhood holidays in County Tipperary, though never resided in Ireland.
6.
Shane MacGowan lived in many parts of southeast England such as Brighton, London, and London's home counties, and attended an English public school.
7.
Shane MacGowan was found in possession of drugs and expelled in his second year.
8.
Shane MacGowan was first publicly noted in 1976 at a concert by London punk rock band The Clash, where his earlobe was damaged by future Mo-dettes bassist Jane Crockford.
9.
Shane MacGowan drew upon his Irish heritage when founding The Pogues and changed his early punk style for a more traditional sound with tutoring from his extended family.
10.
Shane MacGowan has often cited the 19th-century Irish poet James Clarence Mangan and playwright Brendan Behan as influences.
11.
In 1997, Shane MacGowan appeared on Lou Reed's "Perfect Day", covered by numerous artists in aid of Children in Need.
12.
The Pogues and Shane MacGowan reformed for a sell-out tour in 2001 and each year from 2004 to 2009 for further tours, including headline slots at Guilfest in England and the Azkena Rock Festival in the Basque Country.
13.
Shane MacGowan has been seen many times with The Libertines and Babyshambles singer Pete Doherty.
14.
Shane MacGowan has worked with Nick Cave and joined him on stage.
15.
In 2010, MacGowan played impromptu shows in Dublin with a new five-piece backing band named The Shane Gang, including In Tua Nua rhythm section Paul Byrne and Jack Dublin, with manager Joey Cashman on whistle.
16.
MacGowan and The Shane Gang performed at The Red Hand Rocks music festival in the Patrician Hall, Carrickmore County Tyrone in June 2011.
17.
Shane MacGowan made a return to stage on 13 June 2019 at the RDS Arena in Dublin as a guest for Chrissie Hynde and the Pretenders.
18.
In 2020, Shane MacGowan reportedly returned to the studio to record several new songs with the Irish indie band Cronin led by brothers Johnny and Mick Cronin.
19.
Shane MacGowan appeared in an episode of Fair City, shown on 28 December 2008.
20.
In 2009, MacGowan starred in the RTE reality show Victoria and Shane Grow Their Own, as he and his-wife Victoria Mary Clarke endeavoured to grow their own food in their own garden.
21.
In 2010, Shane MacGowan offered a piece of unusual art to the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children to auction off to support their services to children: a drawing on a living room door.
22.
On 26 November 2018, after a decades-long relationship and subsequent 11-year engagement, Shane MacGowan married Irish journalist Victoria Mary Clarke in Copenhagen.
23.
Shane MacGowan is a Roman Catholic, describing himself as "a free-thinking religious fanatic" who prays to Buddha.
24.
In 2001, Sinead O'Connor reported Shane MacGowan to the police in London for drug possession, in what she said was an attempt to discourage him from using heroin.
25.
At first furious, Shane MacGowan later expressed gratitude towards O'Connor and claimed that the incident helped him kick his heroin habit.
26.
In 2015, Shane MacGowan admitted he regretted not joining the IRA.
27.
Shane MacGowan has used a wheelchair following a fall as he was leaving a Dublin studio in the summer of 2015, which fractured his pelvis.
28.
Shane MacGowan has long been known for having very bad teeth.
29.
Shane MacGowan lost the last of his natural teeth sometime around 2008.
30.
Shane MacGowan often performed onstage and gave interviews while drunk.
31.
Shane MacGowan began drinking at age five, when his family gave him Guinness to help him sleep, and his father frequently took him to the local pub while he drank with his friends.
32.
Shane MacGowan said that his drinking was not a problem for many years but "went from being just a normal part of life" to becoming very unhealthy, a circumstance made much worse due to the introduction of hard drugs such as heroin.
33.
Shane MacGowan explained that a serious bout with pneumonia, compounded by an excruciatingly painful hip injury which required a long stay in the hospital, was ultimately responsible for his sobriety.
34.
The lengthy hospital stay required a total detox, and Shane MacGowan's sobriety continued after he got home.
35.
Shane MacGowan was hospitalised for an infection on 6 December 2022.
36.
In January 2018, MacGowan was honoured with a concert gala to celebrate his 60th birthday at the National Concert Hall in Dublin, where he was presented the Lifetime Achievement Award by Irish President Michael D Higgins.