Shane MacGowan left €10,000 to cover the bar tab at The Thatched Cottage after his funeral in Nenagh, Co Tipperary on Friday, December 8.
“I know the pub they are going to for the meal after, there has already been €10,000 handed over the counter for free beer – it was Shane’s last request," one of MacGowan's pals told The Independent.
“It is a beautiful place just outside of town but there is only a limited amount of people allowed.”
Indeed, The Thatched Cottage Bar and Restaurant in Nenagh, Co Tipperary had posted on social media that it would be closed for a private event from 3 pm on December 8, the day of MacGowan's funeral.
According to The Independent, guests who attended the post-funeral gathering needed 'pre-prepared concert-style passes and lanyards' to enter, while a ground of ten 'suited minders' looked after the doors.
Among those in attendance were Johnny Depp, Bobby Gillespie, MacGowan's bandmates from The Pogues, and Glen Hansard.
Hansard had organized the music performances that featured during MacGowan's funeral, including the rousing rendition of "Fairytale of New York," which prompted mourners to dance in the aisles of the church.
That special moment when the outpouring of love for Shane couldn’t be held in anymore, when the wake gatecrashed the funeral mass & it was beautiful! Shane’s spirit was there for the world to see. Just how he wanted it - pure, spontaneous, celebratory, rebellious joy & love 💚✊🏻 pic.twitter.com/pwh6yPi9Kn
— Andy Nolan (@AndyNolanBCS) December 12, 2023
One guest who attended MacGowan's repass at The Thatched Cottage told The Independent that the “most special moment of the night” was when the remaining members of The Pogues –including Spider Stacy, 64, and bassist Cáit O’Riordan, 58– performed "The Body of An American."
On December 10, MacGowan’s widow Victoria Mary Clarke shared a picture of her and Johnny Depp, who she thanked for “for being a tower of strength and for supporting me and @ShaneMacGowan in so many ways with such respect and compassion and loyalty."
Depp, a longtime friend of MacGowan's, was a pallbearer and read a prayer of the faithful during the funeral.
When you lose a loved one you need to be able to focus on the blessings and I want to thank #johnnydepp for being a tower of strength and for supporting me and @ShaneMacGowan in so many ways with such respect and compassion and loyalty ❤️ photo @ginadeuters pic.twitter.com/uIyuGiASOL
— @victoriamary (@Victoriamary) December 10, 2023
MacGowan, 65, died peacefully on Thursday, November 30 after a long illness. The former Pogues frontman is survived by his wife Victoria Mary Clarke, father Maurice, and sister Siobhan.
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