‘I’LL NEVER FORGET’
Lover’s’ agony on finding George Michael
George Michael’s longtime lover found him dead in bed on Christmas morning, the heartbroken man lamented, as the exact cause of the singer’s death remained a mystery Monday.
London celebrity hairstylist Fadi Fawaz said he was shocked by the discovery and shared his pain on social media.
“Its a xmas i will never forget finding your partner dead peacefully in bed first thing in the morning,” Fawaz tweeted Monday.
Fawaz also changed his Twitter bio to read simply, “I will never stop missing you xxx,” along with a picture of him kissing Michael with his arm around him.
Michael, 53, paired up with Fawaz, 43, not long after the star’s 2009 breakup with longtime boyfriend Kenny Goss, a Texas art dealer.
Michael had been talking to Goss again in recent weeks, rekindling their friendship, the London Sun reported.
“I’m heartbroken with the news that my dear friend and longtime love George Michael has passed,” Goss said in a statement to the Dallas Morning News.
“He was a major part of my life and I loved him very, very much. He was an extremely kind and generous man. The beautiful memories and music he brought to the world will always be an im- portant part of my life and those who also loved and admired him.”
Months before his death, Michael appeared overweight and unrecognizable, judging by his last known pictures.
The snapshots reportedly were taken on Sept. 14, when Michael went out to dinner with friends near his home in Oxfordshire, England.
The extra pounds didn’t slow down Michael’s partying, the Mirror reported on Monday.
“George loved having friends over and was often still going strong well into the following morning. This continued right up until his death,” a Mirror source said.
“He may have been in his 50s, but it’s fair to say he gave much younger partygoers a run for their money, and the atmosphere was always quite hedonistic.”
Michael’s reps couldn’t be reached for comment on Monday. His manager cited vague “heart failure” as the general cause of death on Sunday.
Michael had long struggled with marijuana abuse — once burdened by a 25-joint-a-day smoking habit.
“It almost killed me,” he told the Ham & High newspaper in 2014.
“On a subconscious level, it was very frightening, and I’ll probably never feel quite as safe again.”