The Pogues: Last News

Hozier performed ‘Too Sweet’ and a cover of The Pogues’ ‘Fairytale of New York’ on Saturday Night Live – watch footage of the performance below.Last night (December 21), the singer-songwriter appeared on the show for the first time since he debuted on the series in 2014. Introduced by Martin Short, he performed his runaway hit ‘Too Sweet’, taken from this year’s surprise release ‘Unheard EP’.The March record featured four previously unreleased songs, all of which were recorded during the sessions for ‘Unreal Unearth’.

The Pogues have revealed the guest vocalists for their 2025 ‘Rum Sodomy & The Lash’ UK tour.The band will be heading on a UK tour in May, making stops in cities including Leeds, Glasgow, Newcastle, Birmingham and Manchester. Last Friday (January 31) they announced the guest vocalists who will join them for their 2025 ‘Rum Sodomy & The Lash’ tour, marking the 40th anniversary of their 1985 album of the same name.The tour will feature original members James Fearnley, Jem Finer and Spider Stacy along with guest musicians Holly Mullineaux (bass), Jordan O’Leary (banjo), Fiachra Meek (pipes/whistles – Alfi), John Dermody (drums – Lankum) plus brass section Pete Fraser, Daniel Hayes and Ian Williamson.The roster of vocalists includes Nadine Shah, Iona Zajac, John Francis Flynn, Lisa O’Neill and Lankum‘s Daragh Lynch.A post shared by The Pogues (@thepoguesofficial)The band are set to play their 1985 LP ‘Rum Sodomy & the Lash’ in its entirety along with B-sides, extended version tracks and a special selection of their most beloved material.

Fontaines D.C. frontman Grian Chatten joined The Pogues on stage to perform ‘Streams Of Whiskey’ in Dublin last night (December 17).

The Pogues have addressed the culture wars surrounding their song ‘Fairytale Of New York’ in a new interview with NME.The 1987 Christmas track, which is performed by Kirsty MacColl and The Pogues frontman Shane McGowan, has been at the centre of debate in recent years due to its use of a homophobic slur f****t in its lyrics.In 2018 McGowan defended the word, saying that it was never intended to be homophobic, though two years later BBC Radio 1 announced they would be playing a censored version in the run-up to Christmas – a move followed by BBC Radio 2 in 2022.The decision prompted criticism from some, including Nick Cave who said that removing the word “destroys the song by deflating it right at its essential and most reckless moment, stripping it of its value.”In 2019, actress and screenwriter Ruth Jones also faced backlash after Gavin & Stacey included the lyric in that year’s Christmas TV special.

The Pogues have spoken to NME about their 2025 tour in celebration of the 40th anniversary of ‘Rum Sodomy & The Lash’, playing without Shane MacGowan, and how Fontaines D.C. helped pave the way for the run of dates.The Irish icons recently announced their first headline tour in 13 years – and first since the passing of Shane MacGowan – which will feature the original members James Fearnley, Jem Finer and Spider Stacy, alongside a cast of guests standing in for the late frontman.It will come off the back of two shows that commemorate 40 years of The Pogues’ debut album ‘Red Roses For Me’ this year.

The Pogues have announced a 2025 UK and Ireland tour in celebration of the 40th anniversary of ‘Rum Sodomy & The Lash’.The run of dates will commence at the O2 Academy in Leeds on May 1, 2025 and will see the Irish icons make stops in Birmingham, London, Glasgow and Manchester before wrapping up the tour at the O2 City Hall in Newcastle on May 8.The tour will feature original members James Fearnley, Jem Finer and Spider Stacy along with special guests in their first UK appearance since 2014, when they performed at London’s Hyde Park with The Libertines. The tour also marks their first UK headline tour in 13 years.A ticket pre-sale will be available on Wednesday (November 20) for fans who sign up here by 5pm tomorrow (November 19).

Baby Reindeer creator Richard Gadd has opened up about how Shane MacGowan and The Pogues have influenced his work.Gadd’s recent Netflix series claims to tell the “true story” of his real-life stalking experience and reached the top of the streaming charts after going viral online.In a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Gadd opened up about his inspirations and in particular, the music of The Pogues and the late Shane MacGowan.The Irish musician and iconic frontman died “peacefully” in hospital from pneumonia on November 30. He was 65 years old.

Bruce Springsteen has paid tribute to the late Shane MacGowan with a rousing cover of a Pogues classic while performing in Ireland – watch fan-shot footage of the performance below.On Sunday night (May 12), Springsteen performed at the Nowlan Park in Kilkenny, Ireland. To kick off the show in a special way, Springsteen and The E Street Band began their setlist with a cover of The Pogues’ ‘A Rainy Night In Soho’.Watch fan-shot footage of ‘A Rainy Night In Soho’ below.@springsteen OPENING UP KILKENNY WITH @poguesofficial RAINY NIGHT IN SOHO!! @springsteen #SpringsteenTour2024 #Springsteen #estreetband pic.twitter.com/3vfabQ4WGa— Spring-Nuts (@SpringNuts_) May 12, 2024While ‘A Rainy Night In Soho’ was the first song to be performed during the concert, it wasn’t the first song that Springsteen played on Sunday.

Shane MacGowan‘s widow, has shared that she is searching for her late husband’s missing Easter Rising rifle which “meant so much to him”.Clarke announced on social media that the late Pogues frontman’s rifle from the 1916 Easter Rising has gone missing and is suspected to have been stolen. The firearm, which was used during the Irish rebellion against the British government, was a Lee–Enfield 303.It was a 60th birthday gift to MacGowan from singer-songwriter Glen Hansard and was used in the takeover of the General Post Office (GPO) in Dublin during the Easter Rising.Taking to her official X/Twitter account, Clarke tweeted: “Shane’s 1916 rifle has gone missing, most likely been stolen.

Sinead O’Connor’s daughter performed an emotional cover of ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’ during a tribute show in the US last night (March 20) – watch the footage below.The special concert, which was announced in January, took place at Carnegie Hall in New York City. Dubbed ‘Sinéad & Shane At Carnegie Hall’, the event was held in memory of O’Connor and the late Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan – both of whom died last year.As the Independent reports, “the closing suite of songs” included a moving rendition of O’Connor’s classic 1990 single ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’ by her 28-year-old daughter Roisin Waters.She appeared barefoot on stage and was backed by a live band.

Ricky Wilson has recounted the time that Shane MacGowan once asked for an apple from Kaiser Chiefs‘ rider, which he later used to smoke crack.Wilson was speaking to The Guardian for their ‘Flashback series’, in which they recreate a photo of their younger self and reflect on how their lives have changed since the photo was taken. The shot Wilson recreated was from New Years Eve 2001, in which he was covered in the streamers from a party popper.While he was recalling how “starstruck” the young Kaiser Chiefs would get around other artists as they were breaking through, Wilson mentioned the amusing incident with the late frontman of The Pogues which took place at a festival.“I was always starstruck, too – we’d get to a festival, lock ourselves in our dressing room, and point and stare at all the other artists as they arrived. Shane MacGowan once came into our dressing room.

Shane MacGowan’s wife, Victoria Mary Clarke, has revealed that she is in grief counselling following the death of her husband.The Irish musician and iconic frontman of The Pogues died “peacefully” in hospital from pneumonia on November 30. He was 65 years old.

Shane MacGowan’s widow Victoria Mary Clarke has reacted to the news that The Pogues’ ‘Fairytale of New York’ was beaten to Christmas Number One by Wham!’s ‘Last Christmas’. Writing on X, she posted a link to the George Michael/Andrew Ridgeley track and said: “I love Wham!!! We loved George.” Wham! claimed the top spot on Friday (December 22), finally landing the coveted Christmas Number One for the first time after 39 years. I love ❤️ Wham!!! We loved George ❤️ Wham! – Last Christmas (Official Video) https://t.co/k1nrzqC8X3 via @YouTube— @victoriamary (@Victoriamary) December 24, 2023It made history as having the longest-ever journey to the UK Christmas Number One, after being held off the top on its original release in 1984 by Band Aid’s ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’.

The Pogues and Kirsty MacColl was originally released in December 1987 and peaked at Number Two on the UK singles chart. It was held off that year’s Christmas Number One spot by Pet Shop Boys’ ‘Always On My Mind’.The single returned to the Top 40 in 1991 and, following the download boom, ‘Fairytale Of New York’ has re-entered the Top 20 every December since 2005.

Harry Hill has re-shared Shane MacGowan‘s festive cameo from the 2010 Christmas special of TV Burp. The late Pogues frontman appeared on the show to sing the Irish band’s Christmas classic ‘Fairytale Of New York’, but in a hilarious, quintessentially TV Burp twist, the performance ended up becoming a duet with a giant beluga whale who squeaked along in place of what would have been Kirsty MacColl‘s parts.Despite the audience being in hysterics, MacGowan plays it completely straight, carrying on with his performance as if it were nothing out of the ordinary.Hill has been posting to his Instagram account every day of December in a series of posts called ‘Mattvent’, where he shares a photo each day of a rogue mattress found in an odd place alongside old clips from TV Burp, which aired on Saturday nights between 2001 and 2012.Check out the clip of MacGowan’s appearance below:A post shared by Harry Hill (@mrharryhill)In a further Instagram post, Hill shared some extracts from his memoir Fight! where he recounted the experience of having MacGowan on the show.Hill had come up with the idea of MacGowan singing ‘Fairytale Of New York’ with a beluga whale played by a runner, but had been told by his producer Spencer that he was “having a laugh” and that there would be “no way he’s going to say yes to that!’”In the book, he wrote: “His agent explained to Spencer that Shane got a huge number of requests every Christmas to sing his Christmas hit and that he always turned them down.

Nick Cave has written a new obituary for the late Pogues frontman, Shane MacGowan. As a contribution to The Observer’s Obituaries of 2023 series, Cave wrote a new tribute to his late friend, marking the second time the post-punk musician has written about MacGowan following his passing.

The Libertines have covered The Pogues‘ ‘Fairy Tale Of New York’ in tribute to the band’s late frontman, Shane MacGowan.The band – comprised of Pete Doherty, Carl Barât, John Hassall and Gary Powell – shared a video on their official Instagram page of Barât playing the famous Christmas tune on the piano with both him and Doherty singing along. The caption of the video read: “RIP Shane, this one’s for you matey x”.Two days later, they posted another video of the whole band performing ‘Fairy Tale Of New York’ while on stage during one of their intimate shows.” Another one for Shane x,” read the caption.MacGowan was laid to rest on December 8 after he died from pneumonia in hospital, aged 65, on November 30.

Shane MacGowan‘s widow has recalled how it felt like she was living on the “edge of some kind of actual destruction” during her long-term relationship with the late Pogues icon.The Irish musician died “peacefully” in hospital from pneumonia on November 30. He was 65 years old.

The Pogues’ ‘Fairytale Of New York’ is set to be released on 7-inch vinyl for charity.Frontman Shane MacGowan was laid to rest on December 8 after he died from pneumonia in hospital, aged 65, on November 30. His family, friends and the band themselves are now releasing their Christmas classic single to raise money for charity.All proceeds from the sales will go to Dublin Simon Community – a charity supported by Shane and his widow Victoria Mary Clarke.According to a press statement, the release is also to “celebrate the man himself” by getting the song, which has never topped the charts, to Number One.The 7-inch single will come with ‘Fairytale Of New York’ on the A-side with an instrumental version of the track on the B-side.

Sam Ryder has admitted that he would “love” for The Pogues’ ‘Fairytale of New York’ to beat him to this year’s Christmas Number One spot.The Eurovision star is one of the competitors in this year’s race, with his single ‘You’re Christmas to Me’, taken from the film Your Christmas or Mine 2.However, since the news broke of the death of Shane MacGowan, fans of his festive classic are rallying to get that track to the Christmas Number One. It has never gone above second place in the UK charts, peaking there on its initial release in 1987.

LCD Soundsystem have paid tribute to the late Shane MacGowan with a cover of The Pogues’ ‘Fairytale Of New York’.The Pogues frontman passed away “peacefully” on November 30, having died from pneumonia aged 65. His funeral occurred on Friday, December 8 in Tipperary, close to where MacGowan spent his childhood.James Murphy and co.