Shane Macgowan Biography
Shane Patrick Lysaght MacGowan (born 25 December 1957 in Kent, England) is a musician and singer best known as the original singer and songwriter of The Pogues.
MacGowan was born in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England on Christmas Day, 1957 to Irish parents. MacGowan spent his early childhood in Tipperary before his family moved back to England when he was six and a half. He lived in many parts of the south-east, including Brighton and London. He attended Holmewood House Preparatory School at Langton Green, Tunbridge Wells.
MacGowan's mother was a singer and traditional Irish dancer, and had worked as a model in Dublin. MacGowan grew up immersed in traditional Irish music and culture. In 1971, MacGowan earned a literature scholarship and was accepted into Westminster School, a renowned English public school close to the Houses of Parliament. He was found in possession of drugs and was expelled in his second year.
MacGowan got his first taste of fame in 1976 at a concert by English punk band The Clash, when his earlobe was damaged by Jane Modette. A photographer snapped a picture of him covered in blood and it made the papers, with the headline "Cannibalism At Clash Gig". Shortly after this, he formed his own punk rock band, The Nipple Erectors, later renamed "The Nips". He also tried busking at Covent Garden but had little success.
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