23 October 2023 , 18:56
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Shane McGowan is praying for "peace and love" as he battles ongoing illness in hospital in Ireland.
Victoria Mary Clarke, who has been married to The Pogues frontman since 2018, took to X (formerly known as Twitter ) on Sunday to issue the emotional update on behalf of her fragile husband. Shane, 65, has been receiving inpatient treatment in hospital since July, when he was admitted to an intensive care unit in Dublin. He has reportedly left the ICU but has yet to return home. In December, Shane was diagnosed with encephalitis, or inflammation of the brain, after being hospitalized for an infection.
Victoria, 57, has been keeping the Irish musician's fans updated on his condition since news of his poor health hit headlines last summer. In a post shared to her X on Sunday, a smiling Shane is pictured wearing a medical gown and a crucifix as he lies in his hospital bed.
Shane MacGowan is praying for 'peace and love' from hospital
The Pogues singer has been in hospital since July (Victoriamary/Twitter)"Shane is praying for peace and love for everyone in the world," the journalist captioned the photo, before returning to Twitter to thank her followers for supporting her sick husband. Shane says thank you for your lovely messages and prayers!!!" she wrote, alongside a second picture of Shane grinning again in his bed.
The Fairytale of New York singer has struggled with alcoholism for years, having reportedly first developed a drinking problem while touring around bars and clubs in his early career. In 2016, Victoria said that Shane's success in the music industry had been "both enhanced and simultaneously inhibited" by his relationship with booze. He'd also previously admitted himself to rehab for Valium abuse, and again sought inpatient treatment in 2000 for heroin addiction.
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Shane continued to struggle with substances for the years following, but ended up achieving sobriety in 2016 after being hospitalized for pneumonia and undergoing a lengthy detox. Writing for the Independent that year, Victoria admitted she'd never noticed Shane's drinking habits as a teenager as she was also a heavy drinker.
"We drank every night, all night. In my teens, I could drink a whole bottle of whiskey without even getting a hangover," she said. “I thought nothing of starting the day with a tequila and grapefruit. And at the office where I worked in London, lunch was typically a gin and tonic and a sandwich. After work, everyone went to the pub – every night. And so, it took some time before Shane’s drinking went from being just a normal part of life to being a problem."