Our George was no heroin addict
Superstar’s family and friends hit back at reports he was addicted to drug before his shock death on Christmas Day
GEORGE Michael’s grieving family yesterday reacted furiously to claims he was hooked on drugs before his death and insisted: “He was no heroin addict.”
The pop legend’s shock passing on Christmas Day has been met with a mass outpouring of grief and a celebration of his music by millions around the world.
The official cause of death was heart failure and George was said to have died peacefully in his sleep.
But the Telegraph yesterday claimed the Wham! singer had been experimenting with heroin in the last 12 months of his life.
It was also suggested George had been treated for an overdose.
But a family source said: “The suggestion that George was suffering with heroin addiction or used it in the weeks before his death is entirely false.
“Fans have been celebrating his life and there is no place for such unpleasant and false allegations.
“There were no suspicious circumstances surrounding his death and the police have told us that directly.”
A statement released on behalf of the family by George’s long-term publicist Connie Filippello also made their feelings clear.
It said: “Contrary to some reports, there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding his death and from the bottom of our hearts we thank those who, rightly, have chosen to celebrate his life and legacy at this most distressing of times.”
The statement said George’s loved ones had been “touched beyond words” by the “incredible outpouring of love” for him.
It added: “For someone whose life was ultimately about his music and the love he had for his family and friends, his fans and the world at large, there could be no more fitting tribute than the many, many, kind words that have been said and the numerous plays his records have received.”
George’s use of cannabis and crack cocaine has been well documented in the past and last year he attended the world’s most expensive rehab clinic in Zurich.
Yesterday, it emerged the singer – real name Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou – may have been in turmoil over a fallout with his cousin and close friend Andros Georgiou.
Kyriakos Pourikou, Andros’s brother-in-law, said former music producer Andros had come over from the US this year to try to make amends with George but it never happened.
Kyriakos said: “George was very close to Andros. He’s not in a good way.
“He was a big part of his life from the age of 18 to their mid-30s then they fell
There can be no more fitting tribute than the many kind words said GEORGE’S FAMILY
out over something silly. He came over to meet up. He tried to gear himself up to meet him but it never happened.
“I said to him many times, ‘Let me take you there. There’s only two things he can do – tell you to F off or give you a hug.’
“He loved him so much and, to be honest, that’s when things went downhill. They were good together.
“I think they needed each other, especially now in their fifties.” Kyriakos, whose wife Katerina was George’s cousin, said it was difficult for the family to hear some people bad-mouth the singer.
He added: “We’re hearing old stories again and again. If you knew him, he was different. It’s part of being a rock star, a musician, whatever you want to call it.”
Kyriakos also said of the heroin
rumours: “I’ve never seen that, we’re family. Did I ever see him on drugs? No, not while we’ve been together.”
Kyriakos told how his family found out the sad news on Christmas Day along with millions of fans.
“We knew he wasn’t well but not how bad,” he said. “We just heard it like everybody else at 11 o’clock at night.”
Kyriakos spoke of the generosity of the man whose family he married into 25 years ago. He said of George: “He was a great cousin, a great philanthropist, a great man. It’s a great loss to everyone. He was a very generous person.
“I think in a few years we’ll find out what we’ve missed. I know he’s been going through some tough times but it’s sad it’s happened on Christmas Day.
“He was a great person who has touched everybody’s hearts over the 25 years that I’ve known him. I feel very humble to have known this guy. It’s just a waste of a life at 53. We’re just waiting to see what’s going to happen and when the funeral will be.”
Yesterday, a woman left George’s north London mansion with a black Labrador, while tributes continued to be left at the home in Highgate.
Others were laid at his house in the village of Goring-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, where he was discovered on Sunday. In a new tribute yesterday, musician Deon Estus – who played bass during George’s solo career and with Wham! – said: “It’s a tragic loss but George picked a beautiful day to go and be with God.
“I’m still in shock. It hasn’t quite hit me yet. But it helps to talk about it and to think about all those fantastic tours, all those records, all the people he’s helped and all the things he’s done, which is a lot. I was blessed to have known him.
“He was a beautiful person and a great friend.”
Singer Mariah Carey added: “George Michael, you were such an inspiration. I’m honoured to have not only been your fan, but a friend as well. May you rest in peace.”
Fadi Fawaz, who began seeing Michael following his split from Kenny Goss, had told how he found the star dead in bed ahead of a planned Christmas Day lunch.
He said: “I went to wake him up and he was just gone, lying peacefully in bed.”