How sad RIP Shirley..................

I`m shocked! She was a very nice and loveley Lady!
RIP Shirley

It`s nice to be here, .....

She died of a broken heart probably.

Sad.

From [Variety.com] :



"Shirley Watts, who was married to Rolling Stones drummer Charlie from 1964 until his death last year, has died after a short illness, according to a statement from her family. She was 84.

The statement reads: 'It is with great sadness that Seraphina, Charlotte and Barry announce the death of their much-loved mother, grandmother and mother-in law Shirley Watts. Shirley died peacefully on Friday December 16 in Devon after a short illness surrounded by her family. She will be also sadly missed by her sisters Jackie and Jill, and her brother Stephen. Reunited now forever with her beloved Charlie.'

The couple became a symbol of marital stability in the freewheeling rock world, even as Charlie drummed for a band that was the most famously ribald band in music history. His low-key demeanor always contrasted with that image, rarely more so than in his home-loving habits — which to him always meant Shirley, whom he met in 1961 when both were studying at the Royal College of Art and married, initially secretly, three years later.

Marriage was a kiss of death for pop stars in the early 1960s and Watts initially kept the nuptials secret even from his bandmates, who were furious when they first found out. 'He didn’t want the band to know because he was scared of Andrew and all that,’ said longtime Stones bassist Bill Wyman in Paul Sexton’s recent Watts biography 'Charlie’s Good Tonight'. 'So they kept it secret for about three weeks, [then] the press released it. He still denied it for the first couple of days, and then he owned up and that was all right.'

As for the public, Wyman recalled Charlie being confronted by a reporter from England’s Daily Express. 'I emphatically deny I am married,’ he replied. 'It would do a great deal of harm to my career, if the story got around. 'However, Shirley decided not to lie. 'We have wanted to marry for about a year, and just didn’t dare,'she said. 'The months went on and we decided we could not live separately any longer. I’m terribly happy being Charlie’s wife. It’s just wonderful.'

Watts was hardly the heartthrob type and the marriage was never an issue afterward. The pair suffered problems when Charlie battled substance abuse surprisingly late in his career, during the 1980s, but told Sexton several years later, 'Now, luckily, thanks to my wife, I’ve stopped [using] everything.'

Born Shirley Ann Shepherd, she studied sculpture at the Royal College of Art, where she met Watts, who was studying graphic design while also working as a part-time jazz musician. Their only child, daughter Seraphina, was born in 1968 and the family moved to a rural home in Devon (and lived in France during the band’s tax-exile years), where Shirley founded a world-class horse farm. She became a renowned breeder and show person of Arabian horses.

'She is an incredible woman,’ Charlie is quoted in the book as saying of Shirley. 'The one regret I have of this life is that I was never home enough. But she always says when I come off tour that I am a nightmare and tells me to go back out.' Indeed, the family’s longtime friend Tony King says in the book, 'Shirley always kept him in line. He was never allowed to get too big for his boots if she was around. She would very quickly call it. She didn’t flinch about saying something to pull the rug from under his feet. 'I remember she wrote me this brilliant letter in the early days when they were touring America, around Altamont time,' he continued, speaking of the band’s galvanizing 1969 American tour. She said, ‘Charlie came home at the weekend, full of conceit about being a member of the Rolling Stones. So I made him clean the oven'."

Terribly sad news. Condolences to Seraphina, Charlotte and all the family.

Satisfied since 1976

Very sad news.

The ‘81 tour where the wives/girlfriends strutted out during Honkey Tonk is one of my favorite concert memories. Shirley seemed to be having the most fun with it.

Condolences to the family. RIP

RIP Shirley, great lady of a great gentleman.

From [APnews.com] :

"Shirley Ann Watts, a former art student and prominent breeder of Arabian horses who met drummer Charlie Watts well before he joined the Rolling Stones and with him formed one of rock’s most enduring marriages, has died. She was 84.

'Shirley died peacefully on Friday 16th December in Devon after a short illness surrounded by her family,' her family announced Monday.

While Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood all have had multiple wives and girlfriends, Charlie and Shirley Watts remained together for more than 50 years, until Charlie died in 2021. Their only known crisis happened in the mid-1980s, when Charlie Watts struggled with heroin addiction, a time he would later say nearly cost him his marriage. He was otherwise regarded as so devoted to his wife, and daughter Seraphina, that journalists essentially left him alone.

'I’ve always wanted to be a drummer (and) as long as it’s comfortable with my wife, I’ll continue to do it,' he told Rolling Stone magazine in 1996.

When Charlie wasn’t touring or recording, he and his family lived on a 600-acre, 16th century estate in Devon, where they were better known for their Polish Arabian horses than for the drummer’s singular place in rock history. Stories about the Watts were as likely to appear in Arabian Horse World as they were in a music publication.

According to Charlie, his wife had warm relations with Jagger and Richards and, unlike him, would play the Stones’ music around the house. But Shirley herself expressed ambivalent feelings, telling Vanity Fair in 1989 that the band’s drug use affected her life 'very, very deeply' and that she otherwise had little use for the rock star world.

'It was quite appalling being pitched into the life of the Rolling Stones,' she said. 'I really got lost for about 25 years and I’ve never been able to cope with it. There’s been lots of anger, much of it very, very deep. I like the people in the group - up to a point. But I’ve always hated the way rock music and its world treat women and particularly the Rolling Stones’ attitude. There is no respect.'

Shirley Ann Shepherd was born in London in 1938 and was studying sculpture at the Royal College of Art in the early ’60s when she first saw her future husband, who at the time was part of the emerging blues and jazz scene in England that also included Jagger and Richards. They were already dating when Watts joined the Stones early in 1963, and married the following year, just as the band had established itself as second only to the Beatles in local popularity.

The biggest scandal about their marriage was their decision to get married. Rock star weddings were considered bad business at the time, a turnoff to young female fans - the Beatles’ John Lennon was among those who hedged when reporters asked him about his domestic life.

Without informing the other Stones, the Watts married in Bradford and had a quiet lunch at a nearby pub. According to Paul Sexton’s 'Charlie’s Good Tonight,' a 2022 biography of the late drummer written with his family’s cooperation, Charlie Watts initially denied reports that he was married, telling the Daily Express that 'it would do a great deal of harm to my career if the story got around.' But Shirley happily confirmed the news, saying they could not 'bear to live separately any longer.'

Neither Charlie nor Shirley liked drawing attention to themselves, but at times they did so anyway. Shirley Watts was arrested at the Nice airport in 1971 for attacking customs officials. In 2016, she threatened to sue Polish government officials over the alleged mistreatment of two Arabian mares at a state-run farm.

Shirley Watts also endured a battle with alcoholism, one she helped overcome by hours of sculpting horses and dogs. The Watts’ shared interest in horses grew from collecting figurines to raising hundreds of Arab horses, a passion that began after Charlie purchased a part-bred stallion for his wife.

'I much prefer my life here with the horses. I love the hunt. The sense of power one gets on a horse,' she told Vanity Fair. 'It’s a very primeval instinct. When you hear the hounds - they call it the music - when you hear the hounds’ music, it’s bloodcurdling it’s so thrilling. And it affects both you and the horse. There’s nothing like it. It’s dangerous. It’s exciting.'

She added, with a laugh, 'It sounds rather like a rock ‘n’ roll concert'."

Rest In Peace!

From [www.DevonLive.com] :


Charlie Watts and Shirley Watts re-open Dolton Village Hall (Image: Martin Lock)

"Shirley Watts, the wife of late Rolling Stones drummer Charlie, has died aged 84. Shirley, who was married to the drummer 57 years before his death in 2021, passed peacefully on Friday (December 16) in Devon.

A statement from the family, shared with the PA news agency, read: 'It is with great sadness that Seraphina, Charlotte and Barry announce the death of their much-loved mother, grandmother and mother-in law Shirley Watts. Shirley died peacefully on Friday December 16 in Devon after a short illness surrounded by her family. She will be also sadly missed by her sisters Jackie and Jill, and her brother Stephen. Reunited now forever with her beloved Charlie.'

Born Shirley Ann Shepherd, she met her future husband while studying at the Royal College of Art. They got married in 1964. The couple eventually moved to Devon where Shirley ran a world-class Arabian stud farm. Her work saw Shirley become a highly respected breeder and show person.

Her death comes just less than 16 months after Charlie’s in August 2021. Tributes poured in from around the world last year following the death of Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts at the age 80. Following his death, the small North Devon village of Dolton remembered the Stones’ drummer. As owner of Halsdon Manor, a 600-acre 16th Century estate, Charlie was Dolton’s most famous resident who donated to local fundraising efforts."

Oh no.
RIP.

rip Shirley

RIP, Shirley

Drew

I’m sure someone has already posted this from Ronnie, but anyway
[twitter.com]

My sincere condolences go out to Shirley's entire family. It is especially sad being so close to Christmas. I fully expect that she is in a far better place and has joined Charlie there...wherever that is. RIP Shirley.

Ronnie Wood: "Sally and I are very sad to hear about the death of our friend Shirley Watts. We will miss you so much, but take comfort that you are reunited with your beloved Charlie. Our thoughts and prayers are with their daughter Seraphina, granddaughter Charlotte, and son-in-law Barry, much love to you all at this very sad time."


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Very sad news. Condolences to Shirley’s family and friends.

Sad news! Rest in peace

Recently unseen image of Charlie with his wife Shirley part of Spanish Tony Sanchez's collection. Great photo for the Stones fans!



Spanish Tony Media Archives

Nick@spanishtonymedia.com IG - Spanishtonymedia

Quote
nickdominguez
Recently unseen image of Charlie with his wife Shirley part of Spanish Tony Sanchez's collection. Great photo for the Stones fans!

...with Tony King.....

I've only just heard this from a friend I was talking with on WhatsApp. RIP Shirley. A good life very well lived and an excellent life partner for Charlie. Condolences to her nearest and dearest.

Sad sad news. Rest in peace.

these really feel like family losses for fans like us....

From [People.com] :


Charlie and Shirley Watts. PHOTO: RON GALELLA COLLECTION VIA GETTY


"Shirley Watts, whose marriage to Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts was one of rock 'n' roll's most enduring love stories, died on Friday after a short illness. She was 84.

Her family, including daughter Seraphina and granddaughter Charlotte, announced her death on Monday in a statement shared with Variety. 'It is with great sadness that Seraphina, Charlotte and Barry announce the death of their much-loved mother, grandmother and mother-in-law Shirley Watts. Shirley died peacefully on Friday December 16 in Devon after a short illness surrounded by her family,' the statement read. 'She will be also sadly missed by her sisters Jackie and Jill, and her brother Stephen. Reunited now forever with her beloved Charlie.'

Shirley and Charlie were married from 1964 until the rocker's death in August 2021 at age 80. 'She is an incredible woman,' the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer reportedly once said, per Vulture. 'The one regret I have of this life is that I was never home enough. But she always says when I come off tour that I am a nightmare and tells me to go back out.'

Shirley was remembered in a tribute shared by Charlie's longtime bandmate Ronnie Wood, who wrote that he and his wife Sally were 'very sad to hear about the death of our friend Shirley Watts.' 'We will miss you so much, but take comfort that you are reunited with your beloved Charlie,' Wood wrote on Twitter. 'Our thoughts & prayers are with their daughter Seraphina, granddaughter Charlotte, & son-in-law Barry'.

Born Shirley Ann Shepherd in London, she and Charlie first met in the early 1960s after she dropped in on a rehearsal for Alexis Korner's band with classmates from art school, where she was studying, Charlie said in the book According to the Rolling Stones. They were soon married, and Shirley often joined her husband on tour with the Stones, according to Chrissie Shrimpton, a former girlfriend of Mick Jagger. 'The firm rule was always 'no girls on tour' but Shirley would nearly always go because Charlie simply refused to get up or wash if she didn't,' Shrimpton said in Phillip Norman's biography of the frontman.

Going on tour with her husband was likely a good time for Shirley, as Charlie once explained that she was even more of a fan of the Rolling Stones than he was. 'My wife and daughter may come out on tour, but Shirley's always had other things outside of this band. She's a great fan of the Stones, though. I'm not; it's what I do. Mick and Keith and Ronnie are my friends and the band is a very good one, but that's it,' he said in According to the Rolling Stones. 'But Shirley actually plays our records. I don't.'

The drummer often gave his bride shoutouts in interviews, and told Rolling Stone in 1996 that Shirley was the catalyst behind kicking his substance abuse issues, a problem that only became public knowledge years later. 'I've said it myself, but people don't believe it. I nearly killed myself. At the end of two years on speed and heroin, I was very ill,' he said. 'My daughter used to tell me I looked like Dracula. I just stopped cold – for me and for my wife. It was never me, really.'

Shirley, meanwhile, had her own struggles with alcoholism, and in 1985, spent six weeks in a rehab center. 'It's strange, though, my treatment has had a much different effect on me than it does with most,' she told Vanity Fair in 1989. 'Most people feel that once they get out, Alcoholics Anonymous meetings are a lifeline for them. But I went to one and had to leave. I just couldn't talk about myself anymore; I didn't want to hear about anyone else's problems anymore.' In the same interview, Shirley joked that her husband 'was always a 50-year-old man,' and said he often marched to the beat of his own drum. 'Charlie's tastes were never the same as the rest of the crowd,' she said. 'To tell you the truth, I was always surprised he was a part of that band.'

The couple lived in recent years at Halsdon Manor in North Devon, England, according to Devon Live, and reportedly owned an Arabian horse farm. They were also dog lovers, and in 2020 adopted a greyhound named Suzie from the Forever Hounds Trust. When asked by NME in 2018 what the secret to his successful marriage was, Watts had a simple answer. 'Because I'm not really a rockstar,' he said. 'I don't have all the trappings of that. Having said that, I do have four vintage cars and can't drive the bloody things. I've never been interested in doing interviews or being seen'."

Thank you for the ID.

Spanish Tony Media Archives

Nick@spanishtonymedia.com IG - Spanishtonymedia

My thoughts go out to the family

rest in peace

what a truly great person we've lost today

Both of them were class acts! Thoughts to the family.

Quote
jp.M

Quote
nickdominguez
Recently unseen image of Charlie with his wife Shirley part of Spanish Tony Sanchez's collection. Great photo for the Stones fans!

...with Tony King.....

...and Jo Bergman...

Very sad and upsetting news that also brings back the deep sorrow around Charlie's death. I hope they are reunited now.