The tributes — and the grief — came from everywhere.
From his former teammates and the who's who of the cricketing world, yes. But when the news broke that Shane Warne had died, the shock and sadness also poured from prime ministers, media giants, actors, knighted musicians and socialites.
Warne was a man who spent as much time on the front page of newspapers and in celebrity magazines as he did in the sporting section.
The rolling out of the red carpet for Warne was a natural consequence of his immense talent and showmanship on the cricket pitch.
But Warne had something else, too. Australian icon Magda Szubanski told Channel 7 "it's a charisma that can't be bunged on, that people either have or they don't".
Warne had it. And it drew others into his orbit.
A red ball, and red carpets
Media and sporting personality Eddie McGuire told ABC Radio Melbourne in the days after Warne's death that his close friend reminded him "of the kids in Enid Blyton's The Faraway Tree".
"And in Warnie's case it would be on to the MCG taking a hat-trick or going out for dinner with Mick Jagger and having Elton John dedicate songs and invite him over and introduce him to Elizabeth Hurley."
It was undeniably Warne's cricketing prowess that opened doors to parties and events filled with famous names.
He often said he wasn't prepared for what would happen after the 1993 "ball of the century" propelled him into a limelight only occupied by sportspeople at the very top of the game.
Whether he was prepared for it or not, he was, and is, a household name. His former teammate Damien Fleming told 7 "famous people wanted to be around Warnie" when the Australian test team was at its zenith. Russian tennis superstar Anna Kournikova reportedly wanted to meet Warne so badly, she arranged to come to a training session at the MCG.
The story goes that Sir Elton John said if he could be anyone else, it would be Warne. Sports journalist Robert Craddock wrote for News Corp that he confirmed the rumour with Warne and was also told "so did Mick Jagger".
Sir Elton remembered him as "a magical bowler and such huge fun". He even dedicated a performance on his current tour to his friend. Mourning his death, Jagger called Warne the "greatest spin bowler ever".
He stayed in the spotlight long after he retired from Australian cricket; hosting, commentating, poker tournaments, charity fundraising, guest starring in Kath & Kim, and playing in the huge Indian Premier League.
Fame and power attracts fame and power.
In his 52 years, Warne got car advice from friend Kerry Packer — who told him to sell his Ferrari because it was too flashy — met idol Bruce Springsteen, went to the footy with Richard Branson and strutted a catwalk with Helena Christensen and Claudia Schiffer.
A much-ridiculed mural in his study, seen in a 2015 Fox Sports documentary, showed him at an ultimate backyard barbecue with guests including Jack Nicholson, Marilyn Monroe and Muhammad Ali.
But real friendships were forged away from the flashes of the camera.
"He was such an incredible sportsman," British musician Ed Sheeran told ABC News Breakfast last week.
"People knew him for that but then when they got to know him as a person, that was the thing that actually shone more than his talent and achievements was him as a person.
Warne wrote in his 2018 autobiography "the trick I quickly learnt was to surround myself with good people".
His enduring friendship with Coldplay frontman Chris Martin began in a lift in 2000.
Recalling the meeting, Martin told the Amazon Prime documentary Shane they bonded over explaining cricket to Americans, "because explaining cricket to anyone who didn't grow up with it is almost impossible".
"This guy doesn't give a f**k, but also gives more of a f**k than everyone else, and I couldn't quite work out how he trod that line," Martin said.
Madly in love, and on the front page
Warne had two serious relationships in his life.
He spent 13 years with ex-wife Simone Callahan and together they raised three children, Brooke, Jackson and Summer. The marriage was marred by cheating scandals and months of long absences while the Australian XI was on tour.
He admitted their 2005 divorce amidst a string of affair allegations was the lowest point in his life, but wrote in his autobiography "my relationship with her is fantastic".
His other great love was English actress and model Elizabeth Hurley.
They met at the races in mid-2010, when Hurley was married and Warne was back together with Callahan. He said the pair hit it off, exchanged numbers, and had drinks and dinner at a bar a few weeks later. Warne maintained "nothing else happened" but "we both knew there was something special going on, something real".
On his return to Australia, Warne and Callahan ended it for the final time but said the pair held off on telling the kids. Hurley is said to have quietly broken it off with her husband.
The unlikely celebrity romance combined with Warne's magnetism for scandal meant paparazzi photos broke the news before either separation became public.
The media attention followed the duo through their three-year relationship, accompanied by an often bemused tone — what was Hurley doing with this bloke? One of his texting scandals almost derailed the couple early on.
Away from the headlines, Warne later said the relationship made him want to become a better person. "Not just because of her, but because of the kids. And I just said, you know, 'I'm sick of the rubbish. I want to be better'," he told the ABC's 730.
They got engaged in 2013 on the superyacht of another famous friend, billionaire James Packer. As Warne told it, he got down on one knee without a ring and told her "I've never got along with any woman as well as I get along with you. I'm madly in love with you. Our kids get along great. How would you like to spend the rest of your life with me?".
The reply was "Of course I would, silly, I'm madly in love with you too", he said in his autobiography.
The relationship ended, not with a bang, but with what Warne called a "fizzle". In interviews and reflections in the years since, Warne referred to that time as the happiest years of his life. "We had something very special," he wrote.
Hurley maintained a relationship with Warne and his family in the years since. The pair only ever spoke glowingly of each other in public comments.
"RIP my beloved Lionheart."
International friendships, global scandals
Warne himself admitted he "lived in the moment and ignored the consequences".
"This has served me both well and painfully, depending on which moment," he wrote.
Controversial commentator and friend Piers Morgan wrote in The Sun that Warne "packed more fun into his 52 years than anyone I’ve met in my entire life". The two bonded over golf and a disdain for cancel culture, Morgan said.
The stories often involve one or more of Warne's favourite vices. Friends bonding under the influence of alcohol mixed with sugary drinks, a few too many beers, or cigarettes. Tiger Woods was at the opening of the nightclub Warne started with poker player Joe Hachim in 2013, and it made sense.
With the spotlight came scandal.
His phone, in particular, helped feed the tabloids. From 2000 accusations of harassing a UK nurse to leaked texts to Australian socialite Brynne Edelsten in 2016, the term "Shane Warne text scandal" conjures up a number of stories.
Texts of a different kind helped maintain deep friendships with people scattered across the globe.
Morgan wrote that he and his "great mate" shared regular texts when they were not in the same country together, including a recent "hysterically funny argument about the merits of yeast concentrates".
He stayed connected with even his more casual friends, including "late-night texts" to Magda Szubanski. Australian entertainment reporter Peter Ford, who never actually met the cricketer in person, told 2GB some of those texts included Warne calling his three children "the greatest thing I've ever got right in my life".
Cricketer Glenn Maxwell told 7 in the last texts they exchanged, Warne kept "chipping away" to make sure the 33-year-old, who has publicly discussed his mental health struggles, was OK.
He ended the conversation with "a little paragraph to say that he was there for me", Maxwell said.
Everyone's mate
In a tribute to Warne after his death, personalities Hamish Blake and Andy Lee summed it up: "He just had a crack at everything."
He hosted a short-lived, late-night talk show called Warnie in 2010. He was one of the eponymous celebrities on the 2016 season of I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!. He started a charity that fell apart in disgrace, but not before it raised significant funds for those in need.
And he made friends everywhere along the way, whether they were into cricket or not — like singer Anthony Callea, who once asked him during a party whether he was a batsman or a bowler.
"Everyone always says, 'I'm mates with Warnie' because that's how he made you feel. You were his mate. He'd stop and talk to everyone," friend and former AFL player Brendan Fevola told his radio show.
It wasn't just reserved for the big names.
Friend Dannii Minogue told 7 about times he'd speak on the phone to total strangers who were having a bad time. "He was just very concerned about people being happy," she said.
Ed Sheeran said his best memories with his mate were "of him being great to other people".
"Me and him had a great relationship. And I have amazing times that I can think of [together].
"But I think the best times I can think of with Shane as where he met … people that he'd never met before.
"And then he made amazing memories for them."
A state memorial service will be held for Shane Warne at the MCG on Wednesday, March 30.
