Tag: Andrew Ridgeley

Categories
Andrew Ridgeley Wham! Wham! in China

WHAM! 10 Days in China on BBC Two

WHAM! 10 Days in China will air on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer on August 29, 2026, bringing the landmark 1985 China tour back to UK television with newly restored footage and fresh interviews.

A Major BBC Broadcast Event

BBC Two and BBC Music are presenting Wham! 10 Days in China as part of a special night of programming celebrating Wham! and George Michael. The film—produced by Supercollider (Zinc Media Group) and Sony Music Vision in association with Sony Music Entertainment UK and the BBC—offers UK viewers their first chance to see the fully restored documentary on television.

The BBC broadcast is positioned as a companion to earlier Wham!-focused programming, including Last Christmas Unwrapped, which drew significant audience affection and helped pave the way for this new milestone.

What the Documentary Covers

Wham! 10 Days in China revisits the duo’s groundbreaking 1985 visit to China—an event that made George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley the first Western pop group to perform in the country. Their concerts in Beijing and Guangzhou introduced live Western pop to audiences under strict cultural guidelines and marked a turning point in Wham!’s global rise.

The film features:

Final Takeaway

The August 29 BBC broadcast of Wham! 10 Days in China is not just a documentary airing—it’s a cultural event. For longtime fans, music historians, and anyone fascinated by the intersection of pop culture and politics, this film offers a rare, beautifully restored window into one of the most ambitious and unexpected chapters in Wham!’s history.

WHAM! EP Available for Preorder

Fans will also have multiple ways to experience the upcoming WHAM! 10 Days in China EP, such as:

WHAM!: 10 Days in China – The Live EP
Amazon Exclusive Edition
Colour vinyl (#ad)

Wham! 10 Days In China – The Live EP Vinyl (#ad)

Wham! 10 Days In China – The Live EP CD (#ad)

Additional Information

Additional information is available in:

Celebrate George Michael’s legacy with us. Follow Yours Only George on YouTube, Facebook, X, Threads, Bluesky, Instagram, Tumblr, and Pinterest to be part of a community that keeps his spirit alive. Want the latest news, features, and special projects? Join our mailing list and stay connected to everything George Michael.

Categories
Andrew Ridgeley Wham! Wham! in China

WHAM! 10 Days in China – The Live EP Release Date Announced

WHAM!’s 10 Days in China – The Live EP arrives December 4, 2026, marking the first official release of live audio from the duo’s historic 1985 concerts in Beijing and Guangzhou. It’s a landmark moment for fans and for pop history: after four decades, these performances—long discussed, partially glimpsed, and recently revisited in the acclaimed documentary WHAM! 10 Days in China—are finally available in fully mixed and mastered form.

Tracklist

The new EP captures four songs from those shows, each newly mixed and mastered by longtime Wham! collaborator Chris Porter, using the original live recordings.

The EP features four of Wham!’s biggest hits performed live during the China concerts:

  • Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go (Live in Beijing)
  • Everything She Wants (Live in Guangzhou)
  • Freedom (Live in Beijing)
  • Careless Whisper (Live in Guangzhou)

Formats & Editions

Fans will have multiple ways to experience the EP, such as:

WHAM!: 10 Days in China – The Live EP
Amazon Exclusive Edition
Colour vinyl (#ad)

Wham! 10 Days In China – The Live EP Vinyl (#ad)

Wham! 10 Days In China – The Live EP CD (#ad)

A Historic Pop Milestone, Newly Unveiled

Wham!’s visit to China in 1985 was more than a tour—it was a cultural breakthrough. As the first Western pop group to perform in China, George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley stepped onto stages in Beijing and Guangzhou at a time when Western music was still largely inaccessible to Chinese audiences. Their concerts became symbols of cultural openness and global pop’s expanding reach.

Additional Information

Additional information is available in:

Celebrate George Michael’s legacy with us. Follow Yours Only George on YouTube, Facebook, X, Threads, Bluesky, Instagram, Tumblr, and Pinterest to be part of a community that keeps his spirit alive. Want the latest news, features, and special projects? Join our mailing list and stay connected to everything George Michael.

Categories
Andrew Ridgeley Wham! Wham! in China

Andrew Ridgeley Makes Appearance at London Screening of WHAM! 10 Days in China

Andrew Ridgeley stepped back into the spotlight on July 14, 2026, for a special London screening of the new documentary WHAM! 10 Days in China.

A Documentary Revisiting a Landmark Moment

WHAM! 10 Days in China, directed by Mike Christie, explores the duo’s groundbreaking tour as the first Western pop group to perform in communist China. The film blends restored archival footage with new interviews, including Andrew’s own reflections on the cultural significance of the trip. The documentary arrives in theaters on July 28, 2026, offering fans the most comprehensive look yet at the tour that helped cement Wham!’s global legacy.

It is remarkable to see people’s first reaction to that kind of genre of music. It’s evident that some had never actually been exposed to that before.

In hindsight, being able to understand what it meant to those people, it was touching and moving and gave the whole trip a substance and meaning that perhaps didn’t have previously. I think George would feel the same way.”

Andrew Ridgeley
“‘It still catches me’ says emotional Andrew Ridgeley over losing best friend George Michael ahead of new Wham! film” – Daily Star

A Rare Step Back Into Public Life

Although Andrew has largely lived privately since the early 1990s, he has made a handful of meaningful appearances in recent years. In May 2026, he accepted the Academy Fellowship at The Ivors Awards on behalf of George Michael, sharing heartfelt reflections on what the honor would have meant to his late friend.

His appearance at the WHAM! 10 Days in China screening continues that quiet but significant pattern: Andrew emerging publicly when it matters most—when celebrating Wham!’s legacy, George Michael’s memory, and the cultural impact they made together.

Additional Information

Additional information is available in:

Celebrate George Michael’s legacy with us. Follow Yours Only George on YouTube, Facebook, X, Threads, Bluesky, Instagram, Tumblr, and Pinterest to be part of a community that keeps his spirit alive. Want the latest news, features, and special projects? Join our mailing list and stay connected to everything George Michael.

Categories
Andrew Ridgeley Pepsi & Shirlie Wham!

Wham!’s The Final: Celebrating the 40th Anniversary of a Pop Landmark

On June 28, 1986, 72,000 fans filled Wembley Stadium for what would become one of the most iconic farewells in pop history: Wham!’s The Final—a six‑hour celebration of joy, gratitude, and the end of an era.

Forty years later, the concert still stands as a defining moment not only for George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley, but for 1980s pop culture itself.

A Farewell Announced With Love

Earlier that year, Wham! publicly confirmed they would part ways, with George Michael explaining the split as an amicable, intentional transition into adulthood and artistic independence.

June 28, 1986: Wembley Says Goodbye

The Final opened with the premiere of Wham! in China: Foreign Skies, shown on giant screens — setting a record for the largest audience ever to attend a film premiere.

A massive black curtain emblazoned with THE FINAL dropped to reveal George Michael in leather and sunglasses, launching into an extended intro of “Everything She Wants.” Andrew Ridgeley, Pepsi DeMacque, and Shirlie Holliman soon joined him, kicking off a setlist that traced the full arc of Wham!’s meteoric career.

During “Bad Boys,” Pepsi and Shirlie appeared in playful bouffant wigs.

Elton John, dressed in full Ronald McDonald makeup and costume performed “Candle in the Wind.”

For the encore, Simon Le Bon of Duran Duran joined Elton John and Wham! for a final, exuberant performance of “I’m Your Man.”

The atmosphere was electric — fans waving orange program cards, George dividing the stadium into singing sections, and the duo repeatedly thanking the audience for their support.

A Day of Endings and Beginnings

In a poetic twist, Wham!’s final single “The Edge of Heaven” hit No. 1 on the UK charts the same day as the Wembley concert. It was a triumphant close to a career that had lasted just three years but reshaped the sound of 1980s pop.

George Michael, only 23, was already preparing for a more mature artistic path — one that would soon lead to Faith and global superstardom. Andrew Ridgeley, too, stepped into a new chapter, supported by the legacy they had built together.

Why The Final Still Matters 40 Years Later

Four decades on, The Final remains a cultural touchstone because it captured something rare: a pop group choosing to end at their peak, with gratitude, spectacle, and love.

It honored the fans who propelled Wham! to global success.

It showcased George Michael’s evolution into a once‑in‑a‑generation artist.

It preserved the joy, color, and optimism that defined Wham!’s music.

It demonstrated a friendship strong enough to end with celebration rather than conflict.

The images of that day — sunlight over Wembley, fans waving, George and Andrew embracing — still resonate as symbols of a band that knew exactly how to say goodbye.

A Legacy That Still Shines

As we mark the 40th anniversary of The Final, Wham!’s music continues to inspire new generations. From “Wake Me Up Before You Go‑Go” to “Everything She Wants,” their songs remain timeless, joyful, and unmistakably theirs.

And on June 28, 1986, they gave the world a farewell worthy of their legacy.

Celebrate George’s legacy with us. Follow Yours Only George on YouTube, Facebook, X, Threads, Bluesky, Instagram, Tumblr, and Pinterest to be part of a community that keeps his spirit alive. Want the latest news, features, and special projects? Join our mailing list and stay connected to everything George.

Categories
Andrew Ridgeley Wham! Wham! in China

Wham! 10 Days in China Tickets on Sale Today as First Trailer Released

Tickets for the theatrical release of Wham! 10 Day in China are on sale today, coinciding with the debut of the film’s first full trailer. The documentary of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley’s visit to China in 1985 will screen worldwide on July 28, 2026.

A First Look: The Trailer

The new trailer shows restored, never-before-seen archival footage that wasn’t in Wham! in China: Foreign Skies, including more of the infamous George Michael massage scene. It includes interviews with Andrew Ridgeley and Chinese fans who experienced Wham! concerts in China.

Tickets Now Available

Tickets for the one-night-only event are on sale today. The official site is a good place to start for ticket information: www.wham10daysinchina.com.

After Theaters

Following the worldwide debut on July 28, 2026, Wham! 10 Days in China will air on BBC Two this summer. There is no word yet on other sources to see the documentary.

Additional Information

Additional information is available in:

Celebrate George’s legacy with us. Follow Yours Only George on YouTube, Facebook, X, Threads, Bluesky, Instagram, Tumblr, and Pinterest to be part of a community that keeps his spirit alive. Want the latest news, features, and special projects? Join our mailing list and stay connected to everything George.