Before Death, Shane MacGowan Wanted Johnny Depp to Forgive Amber Heard Despite Her Ruining His Career
The Celtic and Folk punk band The Pogues lost its frontman Shane MacGowan in November this year. Founded in 1982, the band toured across England and abroad to take their Irish tunes to their fans worldwide. The guitarist and bassist of the band passed away after they played their final show in 2014. Since then, even if the band did not come out with new albums, the younger generation kept discovering them on their own and loved their music. At MacGowan’s funeral, his widow revealed one of the singer’s last wishes that involved Johnny Depp and Amber Heard.
What Did Shane MacGowan Want From Johnny Depp?
After Shane MacGowan’s passing in November 2023, his loved ones gathered together at his funeral including his longtime friend and acclaimed actor Johnny Depp. The duo shared a bond for over 30 years and the funeral witnessed Depp as a pallbearer for MacGowan. He delivered a speech in one of the segments as well. When MacGowan’s widow Victoria May Clarke went on stage to give the eulogy, she nodded toward Depp with a smile and said,
“I hope you don’t mind me saying this, Johnny.. When Johnny had a court case involving his ex-wife Amber, Shane had a long conversation with you, didn’t he? And urged you to forgive Amber. Yeah, he just thought it was the best thing to do because he believed genuinely in forgiveness. (While looking at Depp) I’m sure you have by now, haven’t you? Of course, you have; of course, you have.”
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Clarke married MacGowan after a long courtship in 2018. The couple shared a lovely bond. In the eulogy, Clarke wanted to bring out MacGowan’s humane and soft nature that valued kindness and forgiveness over everything. Despite a bitter public divorce settlement and defamation case, MacGowan wanted his friend Depp to be the bigger man and forgive Amber Heard. The singer’s wife also expressed her gratitude towards Depp for helping MacGowan during some tough times.
“Shane got thrown out of The Pogues in 1991 because his drinking and drug-taking were so hard to deal with. He had a huge sense of relief even though he was incapacitated with hepatitis at the time. Johnny Depp came to our rescue in 1993 when he invited Shane to open his Viper Room club in LA and they worked together on Shane’s new album ‘The Snake’ and the video for ‘That Woman’s Got Me Drinking’.”
Showing his unconditional love and support, MacGowan publicly sided with his pal and made a post on X that proved the same. Among his other friends attending the funeral were U2 singer Bono, Nick Cave and Bob Geldof.
How Did Shane MacGowan Die?
The Pogues frontman had several health issues in the days leading up to his death. He was previously discharged from a hospital in Dublin after some health complications including encephalitis. Clarke revealed that the singer’s death was caused by pneumonia. MacGowan passed away at the age of 65 peacefully in his sleep. Clarke said during the eulogy,
“He actually died during the last rites which was hugely comforting because he was devoted to his faith and he prayed constantly and took Holy Communion every day. I honestly don’t remember what Shane’s last words were but I think he said, ‘thank you’. He said thank you a lot. In fact the nurses commented on how often he expressed his gratitude to them.”
The world of music has lost a valuable person who loved everything it had to offer. The remaining band members, his family and friends, all mourn the heavy loss and sorrow ignited by MacGowan’s passing. He will always be remembered for the songs he sang and the humane impact he left on his peers.
