How Fairytale of New York singer Shane MacGowan ‘left €10k behind the bar of his favourite pub at his VIP wake so guests including pal Johnny Depp and Primal Scream’s Bobby Gillespie could enjoy booze-up’

• Pogues singer is said to have treated guests to a round at The Thatched Cottage

Shane McGowan’s final wish was for mourners at his funeral to enjoy a pint on him, with a staggering €10,000 put behind the bar of his favourite pub, according to reports.

The Pogues frontman, who died aged 65 from pneumonia on November 30 after months of ill heath, is said to have treated selected guests to a round at The Thatched Cottage in Nenagh, Co Tipperary.

Stars including Johnny Depp, Primal Scream’s Bobby Gillespie, and Shane’s bandmates gathered to toast the beloved musician, with around 250 people thought to have attended the ‘official’ wake.

The remaining Pogues members paid a poignant tribute to Shane as they drank into the night, the Independent reports, performing a rousing rendition of their hit The Body of An American.

Attendees were said to need passes for the VIP-only gathering, which came hours after the Fairytale of New York singer’s star-studded funeral in the nearby St Mary’s of the Rosary Church.

The Pogues frontman is said to have treated selected guests to a round at The Thatched Cottage in Nenagh, Co Tipperary

Shane McGowan ‘s final wish was for mourners at his funeral to enjoy a pint on him, according to reports

The wake was held at the watering hole three miles out of Nenagh and was reportedly guarded by bouncers.

Depp is among those who are said to have stayed at the venue into the early hours. 

The Pirates Of The Caribbean actor previously attended MacGowan’s wedding to Victoria Mary Clarke.

She is said to have spent most of the night of the wake ‘hanging out’ with the star, who she described Depp as a ‘tower of strength’ following the death of her husband.

Shane’s widow and his close friend were also among a tight-knit group of mourners who hugged as Shane’s coffin was handed over to be cremated. 

The funeral service was attended by celebrities such as Nick Cave, Bob Geldof and Depp, who read prayers alongside Hothouse Flowers frontman Liam O’Maonlai.

A lengthy funeral procession saw tens of thousands line the streets as the funeral cortege travelled from Dublin to Tipperary, where Shane grew up.

Johnny Depp (centre left) among pallbearers carrying the coffin of Shane MacGowan following his funeral at Saint Mary’s of the Rosary Church, Nenagh, Co Tipperary

Johnny Depp (L) arrives for the funeral mass for Shane MacGowan at Saint Mary’s of the Rosary Church

MacGowan’s coffin was then brought to the front of the church draped in an Irish tricolour flag and placed close to a large black and white photograph of the Pogues singer.

The songwriter is best known for the Christmas classic The Fairytale of New York, which is expected to reach Number One in the charts this season.

The Irish singer had been discharged from hospital over a week after undergoing treatment for viral encephalitis, a condition in which swelling develops on the brain.

His funeral was held on December 8, poignantly on what would have been fellow Irish musician Sinead O’Connor’s 57th birthday.

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