According to a new documentary, David Bowie only realized his cancer was terminal three months before he died. The BBC2 film, David Bowie: The Last Five Years, airing around the anniversary of the rock icon’s death, shows that Bowie found out his treatment was unsuccessful and would be stopped while he was filming the music video for “Lazarus,” his final single. The revelation suggests that initial reports that his final album, Blackstar, was a “parting gift” to fans—as he recorded it while unaware of his impending death—were misleading.
