I received an e-mail a couple of days ago notifying me that Mark Hathaway had passed away.

Mark ran the official Franz Ferdinand Fan Club until a couple of years ago. He was battling a long-standing illness, and he had to step down from running the fan club. The fan club is still in the process of changing hands (I’m still involved with the fan club) but that’s another story altogether.

I hadn’t heard from Mark for a while, and I was worried, but I knew he didn’t spend a lot of time on the internet the past couple of years. He was in the UK, so we only communicated online (and occasionally over the phone), but we got to know each other very well over the years. He was such a hard-working guy — he did everything for the fan club. He also ran the first fan-based Franz Ferdinand website, so he was quite involved with the band. I worked closely with him on the designs for the fan club magazines and other promotional material, and he was just so easy to work with. We meshed really well. Plus, he was a joy to chat with, as he had a great sense of humor. We also shared tastes in music and a fondness for pets.

He’d often send me care packages with 7″ singles and other goodies, and would include treats for my guinea pigs (which they loved). He was just so genuine and wonderful, and I miss him terribly.

My condolences go out to his family and friends.