Wilko Johnson death: Guitarist dies aged 75 after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer

Musician was diagnosed with cancer in 2013 and wrongly told he had 10 months to live

Guitarist Wilko Johnson has died aged 75, his family have announced.

The musician, who played guitar with Dr Feelgood and was a prominent figure in the British punk movement, was diagnosed with cancer in 2013 and told that he had a maximum of 10 months to live.

He died nine years later, on Monday (21 November) at his home.

In a post shared on social media, his family wrote: “This is the announcement we never wanted to make, and we do so, on behalf of Wilko’s family and the band, with a very heavy heart.

“Wilko Johnson has died. He passed away at home on Monday evening, 21st November 2022. Thank you for respecting Wilko’s family’s privacy at this very sad time, and thank you all for having been such a tremendous support throughout Wilko’s incredible life.”

In their own statement, the band posted: “We regret to hear of the death of Wilko Johnson. As founding member of Dr Feelgood he wrote some great songs which we still play today. Our thoughts and condolences to his family at this sad time.”

Born in Essex in 1947, Johnson – real name John Peter Wilkinson – performed with Dr Feelgood from their formation in 1971 to 1977. He played on the band’s first four albums, as well as the chart-topping live album Stupidity (1976).

He left the band in 1977 after claiming he had been kicked out following a disagreement. The other members, however, said he left voluntarily.

Johnson went on to form the band Solid Senders and joined Ian Drury and the Blockheads in 1980.

Johnson also had a career in acting, most famously appearing as Ser Ilyn Payne in the first two seasons of Game of Thrones from 2011 to 2012.

Discussing his casting as the executioner, who could not speak, Johnson said: “They said they wanted somebody really sinister who went around looking daggers at people before killing them. That made it easy. Looking daggers at people is what I do all the time, it’s like second nature to me.”

The musician was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2013 and was wrongly told the cancer was inoperable and that he had between nine and 10 months to live.

Johnson (left) on stage with Dr Feelgood in 1976 (Getty Images)

However, he decided not to have chemotherapy and announced in 2014 that he was cancer-free after the removal of a tumour weighing three kilograms. Earlier that year, he had released the album Going Back Home, a collaboration with The Who’s Roger Daltrey.

In a 2016 interview with The Independent about his autobiography Don’t Leave Me Here, Johnson described the moment he was told he was told he had cancer.

“Everybody must picture it in their minds, right?” he said. “What it would feel like to have a doctor say, ‘You’ve got 10 months.’ I just felt absolutely calm. I did not flutter. I walked outside into a beautiful winter’s day, and felt this rush of elation. I was alive! Alive!

“I still remember the morning the doctors told me I was cancer-free. Snatched from the jaws of death! I mean, wow, what a feeling.”

Johnson is survived by his two sons, Matthew and Simon. Their mother, his wife and former childhood sweetheart Irene Knight, died in 2004 from cancer.