George Michael Funeral Postponed For March, Former Music Producer Speaks Out

George Michael died on Christmas Day in 2016. But, his funeral won’t be held until March. Ironically, that’s around the same time that the gifted singer and songwriter was supposed to release his new album and documentary.

On Monday, Feb. 13, it has been reported that George Michael’s funeral has been postponed three months from his untimely death on Christmas Day, as coroners are still investigating the cause of his death. An inside source told The Metro that the postponement has placed an “intolerable” strain on the singer’s family, especially his grieving father after police said that the body would not be released for weeks.

Vasilis Panayi, a Greek radio host, gave the details to the Daily Mirror as to why Michael’s funeral has been postponed until March, reports Express.

“It’s very hard for all of them, quite intolerable. It’s a shock and terrible for his father. He was looking forward to a happy old age and now all he has is grief. He wants to hold the funeral but so far the police are refusing to release the body and are looking for further clues.”

Family friend Demi Louca, also spoke out, adding, “George’s body is still with the coroner in Oxfordshire. His family are finding the wait intolerable.”

“His body will be there until they have found the cause of death and apparently it is very nearly finished now. They are planning the funeral with the high priest and will announce the date in time.”

This shocking news revelation comes after George’s family outraged following the leak of the 999-emergency phone call that his boyfriend Fadi Fawaz made the moment he died. In a statement released to the Metro, insiders said that the 53-year-old’s family was “extremely upset and truly appalled” by the leak.

This also comes after Adele stopped her tribute to George Michael mid-performance at the Grammy Awards on Sunday night. She apologized for messing up and then for swearing.

“I’m sorry for swearing and I’m sorry for starting again,” Adele said. “Can we please start it again? I’m sorry, I can’t mess this up for him.”

It was also reported that George’s lover has been “banned” from attending the funeral, revealing that he’s been feuding with the family.

Andros Georgiou, a cousin of the late singer told the outlet, “Fadi has not been invited to the funeral. He is not welcome, the family hate him. Heaven help him if he turned up.”

George Michael’s childhood friend and former music producer has since spoken out about the singer’s death. He believes that the singer’s death was related to a drug overdose. In an interview on the BBC’s Victoria Derbyshire Show, last week, Georgiou said that he believes that George’s death was accidental.

“I think it was an accident. Hard drugs had been back in his life. I just think that he took too much of something, mixed with the anti-depressants and the other drugs he was on, with alcohol. I think his heart just stopped beating. You know if you take – if you’re on Xanax for instance, or Temazepam – your heart slows down anyway.”

He also spoke out about Michael’s relationship with Fawaz in a Facebook post, saying that while “crack was one of [Michael’s] favorite drugs,” he believed that the singer was not using heroin up until his death.

“I know that is the one drug he would never touch,” he said.

He also stated that he does not believe that George’s death was a suicide after a series of tweets from Fadi’s account claimed that he had killed himself. Fadi then later claimed that his account was “hacked,” reports People.

George Michael's childhood best friend: "I believe he was dragged back in to the dark side" https://t.co/QCly1ukWcV pic.twitter.com/8uQwfiOjY8

— Victoria Derbyshire (@VictoriaLIVE) January 17, 2017

“I believe he had suicidal thoughts over the last few years because his mental health wasn’t in the best place,” Georgiou said. “I don’t believe this was suicide in a million years because why would you arrange such a huge dinner with the whole family if you’re going to kill yourself the night before. It just doesn’t make any sense. There’s a lot about this that doesn’t make sense.”

Georgiou also revealed that George has been planning to release new music by the beginning of this year. He also wanted to release a follow-up to his previous documentary.

“He was actually getting better. He was planning the Freedom documentary. He had written some new songs. I know he had been out as well. He had been a recluse for nearly four years — I mean he was in rehab for three years. The papers reported it as a year but he was actually in that Swiss Clinic for three years before he came out. But he had stopped all the hard drugs. He was trying to lead a normal life again. I just believe he was dragged back in. You know, to the dark side.”

Friends and family of George Michael may not have to wait any longer for the results, as they should come out in a matter of a few weeks.

[Featured Image by Sean Gallup/Getty Images]