Last week I had the pleasure of meeting Amy Winehouse’s closest friend and housemate Catriona Gourlay, who was one of the last people to speak to her before she passed away in the same bedroom where they spent some precious final minutes together. We arranged to meet in a pub near her house in Margate on a beautiful sunny day clement enough for us to sit in the beer garden. She was wearing sunglasses to hide tired eyes that have spent much of the past four years crying during a bruising court battle with the star’s dad Mitch over treasured personal items sold at auction. The case left her bankrupt and bereft, for not only did they invite ignominy and financial ruin, they also caused a permanent rift with the Winehouse family. However, as we delved into Catriona’s many memories of her best friend - some hilarious, others disturbing and scary - she was revived by her recollection of the love they shared and spoke with incredible candour about those years. It was an interview I had worked on setting up for four years and it was a privilege to meet her finally. Some photos and the resulting article are below:
