Drugs claims surround George Michael’s death as friends say he held ‘hedonistic all night parties’ before he died

George Michael was taking Class A drugs in the months before his death and had been previously rushed to hospital die to drug issues, it has been claimed.

The singer passed away aged 53 at his home in Goring-on-Thames in Oxfordshire, on Christmas Day.

A source, claiming to be close to Michael, told The Daily Telegraph he had been battling a heroin addiction for the past year.

Sources close to George Michael claim he was taking drugs in the months before his death

The source said: ‘He’s been rushed to A&E on several occasions. He used heroin. I think it’s amazing he’s lasted as long as he has.’

The source also claimed that Michael had previously suffered an overdose.

It is understood Michael’s team emphatically deny the claims.

Another source, said to be a friend of Michael’s, told The Daily Mirror that the popstar – who sold over 100million records over a career that spanned four decades – enjoyed hedonistic parties just a few weeks before he died.

The source said that the singer would party all night at his £8million Highgate mansion in north London.

It said: ‘George loved having friends over and was often still going strong well into the following morning. This continued right up until his death.’

A friend said Michael had enjoyed all-night parties at his north London mansion

Michael, born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou, enjoyed a glittering career, but battled a troubled personal life.

Struggles to hide his own sexuality and cope with his fame led to fears for his life as he experimented with alcohol and drugs.

He admitted that during one period he was smoking 25 joints a day in his struggle with addiction. In 2008, he was caught smoking crack cocaine in a public toilet.

Last year, Michael denied claims made by his cousin’s wife, Jackie Georgiou, that he was addicted to crack cocaine, branding allegations ‘highly inaccurate’.

Michael’s former manager Michael Lippman announced the star’s death on Sunday, saying he had suffered a suspected heart failure.