A carvery, Johnny Depp and a night of music — inside the star ...
Shane MacGowan’s friends and family held an “emotional” wake for the singer after his funeral mass on Friday, the Sunday Independent can reveal.
The star-studded gathering was held at The Thatched Cottage Bar in Ballycommon, Nenagh, Co Tipperary — and it probably won’t surprise many people to learn it continued “into the early hours” of this morning.
A source told how Hollywood star Johnny Depp arrived at the bar and was “hugging locals from Nenagh” and “making new friends” as the festivities continued.
The friend of Shane, who was present last night, said the actor “spent most of the night hanging out with Victoria”, putting to rest any suggestion that he was miffed at her anecdote at the funeral mass, where she described how Shane had urged Johnny to forgive his ex-wife Amber Heard.
A picture of Shane on the altar. Photo: PA
The source said the atmosphere at the wake was “inspiring and emotional — and everyone was elated by the music, the shared stories and the craic.”
The friend said there was “four hours of non-stop music” played by some of Ireland’s best-known musicians, such as Glen Hansard, Mundy, Sharon Shannon and The Pogues. The musicians got up “spontaneously” to sing a song or play a tune.
The “most special moment of the night” came when The Pogues played one of their best-known songs, The Body of An American, which has amassed a cult following after being used in the US TV show The Wire.
Mourners at the wake were served a “full Christmas carvery” of turkey and ham and roast spuds with cranberry sauce — along with “lots of pints of Guinness”.
“The thing about Shane is he had made a great collection of people as friends. All kinds of people who would never usually know or talk to each other came together last night. It was very emotional,” said the source.
The hearse makes its way through the streets of Dublin. Photo: PA
“You could really feel the love in the room. Johnny was saying about what a good friend Shane had been to him.
“It was a funeral for the ages. When people were travelling down to Tipperary from Dublin they could see people standing on motorway bridges waving Irish flags. It really felt like a moment in Ireland’s cultural history.”
The cremation is taking place today . Family and friends are due to gather at the private ceremony by the Shannon at dusk to say their final goodbyes.
His close circle have been asked to share their anecdotes and memories of the singer by the river, before his ashes are scattered on the waters.
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