Guardian Shane MacGowan obituary criticised by the Pogues for being ‘full of errors’

A Guardian obituary of the late Shane MacGowan has drawn criticism for being “full of errors”. Among many others, criticism came directly from the Pogues’ official X account:

An execrably poor, deeply shallow commentary. It's extremely disappointing and somehow manages to avoid articulating the genius of S. McGowan, a man whose talent shone like sun, whose poetry delivered strength to us when weak, and a bloody good craic the rest of the time.

— jonny evans (@jonnyevans_cw) December 1, 2023

‘A nasty undercurrent’

Journalist Sarah Woolley suggested some of the wording represented a pattern:

https://twitter.com/Sarah_Woolley/status/1730572989479997931?s=20

The Guardian clearly expected Shane McGowan to die in the late 1990s when they commissioned a job-lot of obits of older names in folk music. Honestly, we all did – but it's a bit sad that the updates since really are just a new line every time he was ill https://t.co/Cw93hRMy3B

— John B (@johnb78) December 1, 2023

I can’t help feeling there’s something in the British media that is ultimately just a bit suspicious of creative people. I also wonder whether its attitudes to Irish people have moved on very much. The Sinead O’Connor obituary was even worse. https://t.co/CNfhp6vsAL

— Frankie Boyle Updates (@frankieboyle) December 1, 2023

Several people said they stopped reading after the piece’s opening line:

Stopped there too.

— Damien Dillon 🇵🇸 (@Damien_Dillon) December 1, 2023

"MacGowan was lauded as one of the best songwriters of the late 20th century." Too right. So why stick that sentence 13 pars down and start with a crack about his teeth and ears? ⁦@guardian⁩ contains much fine journalism but this is crass. https://t.co/9vD9qpnDUR

— Cole Moreton (@ColeMoreton) December 1, 2023

"With his broken teeth and large ears, Shane MacGowan, who has died aged 65, might have seemed the most unlikely frontman for a pop group". – first line of Guardian obituary of a musician who battled addiction and alcoholism all his life.

😨 https://t.co/mgnHSDyLYs

— Malicia Dabrowicz (Vanadian Avenue) (@cocamidemea) December 1, 2023

Tributes to MacGowan

In contrast to the Guardian obituary, there were many warm tributes from musicians for MacGowan:

Ah, the blessings of the cursed.
Shane McGowan’s torrid and mighty voice is mud and roses punched out with swaggering stagger, ancient longing that is blasted all to hell. A Bard’s bard, may he cast his spell upon us all forevermore. pic.twitter.com/Xpc1wYnkhv

— Tom Waits (ANTI-) (@tomwaits) December 1, 2023

This is for you, Shane MacGowan. RIP. #ShaneMacGowan pic.twitter.com/EjU8ETUWx5

— Nitin Sawhney (@thenitinsawhney) November 30, 2023

Sorry to hear of the demise, after a long illness, of one of the greatest songwriters of my generation, Shane MacGowan. The Pogues reinvigorated folk music in the early 80s and his songs put the focus onto lyric writing, opening doors for the likes of myself and others.

— Billy Bragg (@billybragg) November 30, 2023

Nick Cave's new tribute to Shane MacGowan, which doubles as a tribute to Sinéad O'Connor (from his newsletter, doesn't seem to be linkable yet)

"A beautiful and damaged man, who embodied a kind of purity and innocence and generosity and spiritual intelligence unlike any other." pic.twitter.com/VpAmit8aQV

— Ray Padgett (@rayfp) December 1, 2023

For those interested to know more about MacGowan, the Pogues recommended the following piece:

With The Pogues, Shane MacGowan perhaps proved himself the most important Irish writer since James Joyce https://t.co/FVqLRmwAhZ via @ConversationEDU

— @victoriamary (@Victoriamary) December 2, 2023

Featured image via Marcus Lynam – Wikimedia (cropped to 770 x 403)