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Wham!

Wham! Documentary Nominated for Best Music Documentary

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The Wham! documentary has been nominated for Best Music Documentary at the 2024 Grierson Awards.

The awards ceremony will take place on November 6, 2024, at Roundhouse – the iconic music and arts venue in Camden, London.

Tickets are now on sale for the 2024 Grierson Awards ceremony.

The Wham! documentary is listed as the following:

Chris Smith, John Battsek, Simon Halfon, Gregor Lyon, Alex Black

A Netflix Documentary, Ventureland, Passion Pictures, Library Films, Nemperor Production – Netflix

In 1982, teenagers George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley set out to conquer the world as WHAM! By June of 1986 they played their very last gig at Wembley Stadium having done exactly that. Now for the very first time, told in their own words, the amazing story of how in four years they dominated the charts around the world with timeless and classic pop songs.

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About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.

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Wham!

Vote for Wham! as Your Ultimate British Group

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Wham! is on the shortlist for the BBCs Ultimate British Group.

On Saturday, October 19, we will celebrate National Album Day. Radio 2 will be crowning the Ultimate British Group.

Wham! is one of 54 artists, spanning from the 1960s to the 2010s. A panel voted from a list of nearly 100 artists to produce a final list of 54.

BBC Sounds will have a special program on Friday, October 11, 2024, with the results. The show will also be broadcast on Radio 2 on Saturday, October 19, from 1-3 p.m.

You can vote for Wham! as Your Ultimate British Group here. You can vote for up to five of your top acts. Voting closes at 4 p.m. on Friday, September 27, 2024.

According to the rules, a British group is defined as an act containing two or members that is made-up wholly of, or where the majority are, people who were born, live or hold British citizenship.

Make sure to follow Yours Only George on Facebook and X, and join our mailing list for the latest news on George Michael.

About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.

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Wham!

New Wham! “Club Tropicana” Anniversary Merchandise Available

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In celebration of the anniversary of the Wham! classic, “Club Tropicana,” Wham! is releasing new clothing, which includes:

  • White Club Tropicana Cap
  • White Club Tropicana T-shirt
  • White Club Tropicana Sleeveless Vest
  • White Club Tropicana Sweatshirt

This new merchandise is exclusively available at the Wham! site.

Likewise, the George Michael fans are getting to celebrate the 40th anniversary of “Careless Whisper” with “Careless Whisper” Audio CD (Amazon Ad), “Careless Whisper” Red Marble Vinyl (Amazon Ad), “Careless Whisper” Picture Disc Vinyl (Amazon Ad), and “Careless Whisper” Vinyl Maxi Single (Amazon Ad).

Make sure to follow Yours Only George on Facebook and X, and join our mailing list for the latest news on George Michael.

About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.

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Wham!

Calling all Wham! Fans about Last Christmas

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It looks like we are going to be getting a Christmas gift from Wham!

Wham! will be celebrating the 40th anniversary of the song “Last Christmas” and wants to hear “Last Christmas” stories from fans.

Calling All WHAM! Fans

We invite you to help us celebrate the 40th anniversary of Last Christmas! As part of an exciting new project, we want to hear your Last Christmas stories.

Do you have a personal connection to the song? Do you have any videos, photos or stories? Have you ever performed your own version?

Please get in touch here: hello@whamchristmas.com

Wham!

It looks like we will be getting a new website at www.whamchristmas.com too.

This looks like another fun project. A similar call for fans’ help came before the Netflix Wham! documentary.

Make sure to follow Yours Only George on Facebook and X, and join our mailing list for the latest news on George Michael.

About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.

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Wham!

Wham! If You Were There Documentary First Screening

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When George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley as Wham! went to China in 1985, director Lindsay Anderson was charged with the documentary for this historic event.

For the first time, Anderson’s documentary of Wham! in China, If You Were There, will be screened for the public on May 25 and May 31, 2024. Unfortunately, tickets have already sold out.

The 79-minute documentary is described as the following:

In 1985, at the height of their success, WHAM! were invited to be the first western pop group to tour Communist China since the Cultural Revolution. Accepting the offer, the duo made an unlikely approach to Anderson, asking him to direct a documentary record of the tour. However, the collaboration ended awkwardly when his cut of the film was rejected by the band. The film was subsequently re-edited to incorporate more concert footage and released as WHAM! In China: Foreign Skies. Anderson’s cut, titled If You Were There… has never before been screened publicly, making this a not-to-be-missed, potentially once-only opportunity to see it.

Thanks to Andrew Ridgeley, and to Chris Organ and David Austin of George Michael Entertainment for their co-operation in connection with this screening.

According to The Guardian:

The exact sequence of events leading to Anderson’s dismissal are not easy to discern from his papers. Napier-Bell wrote that the first cut of the film was “achingly boring” and that Michael thought a second version appeared to be “scornful” of Wham!.

“It should have been possible for Lindsay – or any director with an ounce of compromise in him – to have adjusted it to what Wham! needed as a promo tool,” says Napier-Bell today. “But he obviously felt it beneath him to compromise with two upstart kids. He was always a difficult old bugger, full of guilt at his own public school education, but suffering from the superiority it had given him.”

Dead dogs, capitalist critique and only four songs: when Wham! squashed Lindsay Anderson’s China film

Make sure to follow Yours Only George on Facebook and X, and join our mailing list for the latest news on George Michael.

About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.

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Wham!

Fantastic and Make It Big Vinyl Release Today

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Wham!’s Fantastic (sponsored link) and Make It Big (sponsored link) are being rereleased on vinyl today.

Check out our previous post with all the information on these vinyl rereleases.

The Official Wham! Facebook page is celebrating with the following videos:

Will you be buying Fantastic or Make It Big on vinyl? Let us know in the comments!

Make sure to follow Yours Only George on Facebook and X, and join our mailing list for the latest news on George Michael.

About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.

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Wham!

Wham! Documentary Loses at BAFTA Awards

The Wham! documentary lost to “20 Days in Mariupol” at the BAFTA awards.

Simon Halfon had the following to say about the loss:

You can see the entire list of winners for the BAFTA awards here.

Do you think Wham! should have won best documentary? Let us know in the comments.

About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.

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Wham!

Wham! Documentary Director Interviewed

The New York Times has a new article on Chris Smith, the director of the recent Wham! documentary.

The following part of the article had me chuckling:

I assume you didn’t listen to Wham! in the ’80s?
Where I was living in Michigan, kids were turning their noses up at Wham! I was a snide teenager, listening to the Cure, Depeche Mode, that sort of new wave thing.

The Story of ‘Wham!’ Comes From an Unlikely Source

Hey, there were plenty of us who didn’t turn up our noses at Wham in the 1980s! Two of us started a fan club in the mid-1980s and eventually started this website in the 1990s!

The Wham! documentary is nominated for best documentary at the BAFTAs.

About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.

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Wham!

New Netflix Wham! Documentary Inside Look

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Netflix has added a new video on YouTube with an inside look of the Wham! documentary.

Producers John Battsek and Simon Halfon provide some background information on the making of the documentary WHAM! with Andrew Ridgeley.

You couldn’t have a better best friend than Andrew Ridgeley. He not only encouraged George Michael to start a band, but he also stepped back to let George shine.

The Wham! documentary has been nominated as best documentary at the BAFTA awards which will be on Sunday, February 18, 2024.

Make sure to follow Yours Only George on Facebook and X, and join our mailing list for the latest news on George Michael.

About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.

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Music Wham!

Deluxe Fantastic and Make It Big on Blu-Ray

Besides the vinyl releases of Wham!’s Fantastic and Make It Big, Wham! will also be releasing deluxe editions of Fantastic and Make It Big on BluRay Audio.

Fantastic BluRay Audio includes:

Wham! Fantastic

Dolby Atmos & 96/24 Stereo

  1. Bad Boys
  2. A Ray of Sunshine
  3. Love Machine
  4. Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?)
  5. A Ray of Sunshine (Instrumental Remix)
  6. Love Machine (Instrumental Remix)
  7. Club Tropicana
  8. Nothing Looks The Same in the Light
  9. Come On
  10. Young Guns (Go For It!)
  11. Nothing Looks The Same in the Light (Instrumental Remix) 

Bonus tracks in Dolby Atmos & Stereo

  1. Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?) – single version 3.32
  2. Young Guns (Go For It) – single version 3.43
  3. Young Guns (Go For It) UK 12” mix 5.11
  4. Blue (Armed With Love) 3.56

 Bonus tracks in Stereo-only 

  1. Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?) [Club Mix] 4.20
  2. Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?) [Social Mix] 6.45
  3. Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?) [Unsocial Mix] 6.38
  4. Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?) [Special Club Remix] 3.05
  5. Young Guns (For For It) – Special US 12” Remix 6.53
  6. Going For It 4.39
  7. Bad Boys (12” Extended Club Mix) 4.58
  8. Bad Boys (instrumental) 3.21
  9. Club Tropicana (instrumental) 3.31
  10. Club Fantastic Megamix 3.57
Wham! Make It Big

Make It Big BluRay Audio includes:

Dolby Atmos & 96/24 Stereo

  1. Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go 3.51
  2. Everything She Wants 5.03
  3. Heartbeat 4.44
  4. Like A Baby 4.15
  5. Freedom 5.02
  6. If You Were There 3.39
  7. Credit Card Baby 5.10
  8. Careless Whisper 6.32

Bonus tracks in Dolby Atmos & Stereo

  1. Careless Whisper (Single Version) 5.03
  2. Freedom (version from The Final) 5.20
  3. Last Christmas 4.26
  4. Everything She Wants (Remix edit) 5.30
  5. Freedom (Long Version) 7.09
  6. Last Christmas (Pudding Mix) 6.45
  7. Everything She Wants (Remix) 6.30
  8. I’m Your Man 4.07
  9. The Edge of Heaven 4.37
  10. Battlestations 5.31
  11. Where Did Your Heart Go? 5.50

Bonus tracks in stereo (only)

  1. A Ray of Sunshine (specially recorded for ‘The Tube’)
  2. Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go (instrumental) 4.02
  3. Freedom (instrumental) 5.10
  4. Last Christmas (Pudding Mix Edit) 4.47
  5. I’m Your Man (Extended Stimulation)
  6. Do It Right (Instrumental)
  7. I’m Your Man (Acappella)
  8. Blue (Recorded Live in China)
  9. I’m Your Man (version from Music From The Edge Of Heaven version)
  10. Wham! Rap ’86

These versions are currently only available through SDE Shop.

About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.

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Wham!

Wham! Documentary Nominated for BAFTA Awards

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The Wham! documentary has been nominated for the BAFTA Awards in the documentary category.

The competition includes:

  • 20 Days in Mariupol
  • American Symphony
  • Beyond Utopia
  • Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie

Will you be watching on Sunday, February 18, to find out if Wham! won best documentary? Let us know in the comments!

Make sure to follow Yours Only George on Facebook and X, and join our mailing list for the latest news on George Michael.

About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.

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Music Wham!

Fantastic and Make It Big Vinyl Release

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Fantastic (sponsored link) and Make It Big (sponsored link) will be released on vinyl on March 22, 2024. It’s the first time in more than 30 years that they have been released on vinyl.

According to Amazon, the track listing for Wham!’s Fantastic (sponsored link) is:

  1. Bad Boys
  2. A Ray of Sunshine
  3. Love Machine
  4. Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do?)
  5. Club Tropicana
  6. Nothing Looks the Same In the Light
  7. Come On!
  8. Young Guns (Go for It!)

Wham!’s first album, Fantastic debuted at #1 in the UK in 1983 and sold millions of copies worldwide. Fantastic is available on standard weight black vinyl.

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According to Amazon, the track listing for Wham!’s Make it Big (sponsored link) is:

  1. Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go
  2. Everything She Wants
  3. Heartbeat
  4. Like a Baby
  5. Freedom
  6. If You Were There
  7. Credit Card Baby
  8. Careless Whisper

Wham!’s second album, Make It Big was released in 1984. It is available with the US cover on standard weight black vinyl.

Andrew Ridgeley said: “It’s a wonderful testament to the enduring nature of Wham!’s music that our legions of loyal fans and the younger cohorts of music fans desire to own the music in their original formats.”

George Michael Entertainment added: “We are delighted that these two classic albums are once again available on vinyl for a whole new generation to enjoy.”

Will you be buying Fantastic or Make It Big on vinyl? Let us know in the comments!

Yours Only George is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.

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Wham!

Wham! Movie in the Works

It’s been 30+ years since Wham! made it big, so it’s about time a movie was made about George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley’s successes as Wham!

According to the Express:

“It will be the story of Wham! from the early days right the way through to their huge success as one of the biggest bands of the 1980s,” said a source.

“It is very early days but the film is in ­production and they are casting at the moment for actors to take the role of George.”

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Could this be Simon Napier-Bell’s Wham! movie talked about in 2008? Simon Napier-Bell (along with Jazz Summers) was one of George’s managers during the later Wham! days, having pulled off Wham!’s historic trip to China.  From the Guardian:

“There are several people sniffing around my Wham! film,” he said, “but I’m not sure any of them will come off because they all require Wham! music in them and George controls that. He will have the yes or no on each script presented. George would want control.”

The film, which would concentrate on the band’s heyday from 1983 – 1985, is said to be budgeted at £50m, though it’s unclear whether this would include a fee for music copyright. Michael has yet to comment.

Simon Napier-Bell, the manager of Wham! in the mid 1980s who masterminded the historic Wham! trip to China, later directed “George Michael: Portrait of an Artist” (Amazon Ad) in 2023. It includes interviews with Stevie Wonder, Sanandra Maitreya, Stephen Fry, Kenny Goss, Chris Cameron, Rufus Wainwright, Piers Morgan, and Jo Whiley.

More information is available at the official site for George Michael: Portrait of an Artist.

Make sure to follow Yours Only George on Facebook and X, and join our mailing list for the latest news on George Michael.

About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.

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Wham!

New Book by Jazz Summers, Former Wham! Manager

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Jazz Summers, a former Wham! manager along with Simon Napier Bell, has a new book entitled Big Life (Amazon Ad).

The Daily Mail has an excerpt of the book, which details how Summers made the “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go” video shoot look bigger than it was and how George Michael usually only responded to the name “Yog” when drunk.

Jazz Summers isn’t the first to write about his experience managing Wham!  Simon Napier Bell wrote I’m Coming To Take You To Lunch: A fantastic tale of boys, booze and how Wham! were sold to China (Amazon Ad) in 2006.

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Make sure to follow Yours Only George on Facebook and X, and join our mailing list for the latest news on George Michael.

About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.

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Wham!

Wham! Will Not Reunite

To any long-time George Michael fan, the new reports that George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley will not reunite as Wham! is not a surprise.

One report said:

Today, a spokesman for George Michael has issued a statement saying that no such reunion is being planned. ‘I wish I could say it was true but these are just rumours. George is touring on his own and he is releasing an album. Yes, this is a denial.’

The Hollywood Reporter is also reporting:

Michael’s longtime manager tells The Hollywood Reporter that the rumor is just that and there is “no truth” to the story.

About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.

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Wham!

Wham! to Reunite?

The Mirror is saying that George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley are planning a “one-off pop extravaganza” to mark the 30th anniversary of their first hit, “Wham Rap.”

If you’ve been following George Michael for any length of time, you know that the Wham! reunion story comes around every few years and nothing comes of it.  This story is probably a spinoff from George Michael’s comments yesterday about his new song “White Light” premiering on British radio on June 29, 2012, which is 30 years to the day when “Wham Rap” premiered on the British charts.

Still, the Mirror is saying:

“They probably won’t do a long tour or release new material like Take That but they do want to commemorate the event with a big gig… and an even bigger party afterwards!

“Things are still in the early stages but everybody is getting really excited about it.”

You can read more here.

About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.

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Wham!

French Vogue Editors Revisit “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go”

The French Vogue editors have completed a new version of “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go” to kick off their magazine’s new web design.

About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.

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Pepsi & Shirlie Wham!

Wham! The Final Reissued for 25th Anniversary

Pepsi and Shirlie have been doing some press for the reissue of The Final.

I also just discovered that Pepsi and Shirlie’s All Right Now has been reissued.  I have been waiting years for this because I still had it on cassette!

And if you’re a big Pepsi and Shirlie fan like I am, make sure to check out:

About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.

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Wham!

Wham Rap! Release Key Event in History of Pop Music

The Guardian lists the release of Wham Rap! as number 28 in its series of the 50 key events in the history of pop music:

Teenager George Michael was inspired by Britain’s early 80s recession to write a song about the upside of being on the dole. Contending that unemployment provided free time to immerse oneself in London’s booming club culture, Wham Rap! was rather subversive. It was also one of the first British pop singles to avail itself of the still new hip-hop style, and if Michael’s rhyming skills were the essence of Englishness, they seemed cool at the time.

About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.

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Wham!

Andrew Ridgeley in the News

Lon sends us A Young Gun no longer: Wham! star Andrew Ridgeley faces up to bald truth of middle age.

There is also another article at Check out Wham! star Ridgeley.

About Melanie

Melanie is the co-founder of Yours Only George and has been the webmaster of the site since 1997. Melanie has been a George Michael and Wham! fan since "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" in 1984.