Ah, the ’80s. A good time was had by all. If you ignore the IRA bombings, the famine in Africa, the Miner’s Strike, and the blatant sexism and homophobia, that is.

By Miles Salter

But for those of us who grew up in that decade, nostalgia is like gravity. Life was a lot simpler; we had the Rubik’s cube, The A-Team and the US President was only mildly kooky. We also had, at least for the first half of the decade, a stunning soundtrack, bursting with great hooks and surprises.

These days, with numerous musical heroes from that era now departed, a look at the past is laced with sadness. George Michael died in 2016, the same grisly year that claimed Prince and David Bowie. Later in life, George remarked how great he looked as a young man, and if you want proof, turn to Wham! 10 Days In China, which documents the band’s famous trip in 1985. Great songs, great hair, great cheekbones, great teeth.

This story has been told before. The band’s manager, Simon Napier-Bell, produced an entertaining and funny book, I’m Coming To Take You To Lunch. Published in 2005, Napier-Bell related how he was coping with the gigantic ambition of George Michael, who wanted Wham! To be the biggest pop act on the planet.

If they were going to crack America, they needed a launch pad. The trip Eastwards, importing their soulful pop, would cast George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley as young, good-looking saviours to the music-starved Chinese masses. It would also bring in the publicity they needed. Napier-Bell took thirteen trips to China to soften up the power brokers. It looked like the game was up when he finally got the green light.

He was not above being crafty, at one point showing the Chinese officials a picture of the camp, flamboyant Freddie Mercury alongside a more sober image of Michael. Which one did they go for? Take a wild guess. This funny story is not included in the documentary, which is a shame.

The documentary’s footage was originally shot as part of a film project by Lindsay Anderson, who had made If… in the 1960s, but his relationship with the band ended in tears. However, the footage is excellent and excels at showing the collision of two cultures.

When the band arrived in China, they were treated like royalty. The same cars that had transported Chairman Mao, emblazoned with three red flags, were pulled out. The years fall away and we’re in the room with George and Andrew, who had to behave as cultural ambassadors at official Chinese functions. It was a big deal. Both Michael and Ridgeley come across as very likeable. They carry themselves with an easy charm. Ridgeley was probably the centre of confidence. Michael relied on his friend, emotionally, a lot. 

The love-hate relationship with the press is explored well in this film. Wham! needed the press on board, even if some of the Tabloid journalism around the band bordered on smutty. “What were you doing with the girl in the green knickers?” sniggered one English headline aimed at Ridgeley, who even today has several girlfriends.

The documentary shows a press conference held after the first Arena show in 1985, when an excitable audience member was yanked from the audience by Chinese authorities. The journalists pounced on this, asking Michael and Ridgeley awkward questions. The band were between a rock and a hard place. They could hardly criticise their host country.

Overall, though, the trip did what it set out to. The film shows a TV interview that went to America while the band were in China, the boys all hair, smile and charm. Within four months they were selling out large venues in the USA. Michael would go on to a highly lucrative solo career.

In a sense, the trip to China foretold his future. He would have to trade his privacy for fame. He was a musical dynamo, but his life unravelled after the deaths of his lover Anselmo Feleppa and his mother, in 1993 and 1997 respectively. Simon Napier-Bell would later offer thoughtful comments on why creatives are so often troubled. He noted on Substack recently: “when a normal person has a troubling thought, they shrug it off. When an artist has one, they check to see if it rhymes with anything.” Ouch!

Michael’s life went into freefall. Car crashes, literally, followed. There were drugs and concerts full of melancholy. It’s great to see him in the China documentary, though. His voice is fantastic and he looks great. The documentary shows an entranced Chinese audience who had never seen anything like it. The Directors have tracked down audience members, some of whom were so inspired by the China gigs that they took up careers in music.

It’s funny, too. The cinema audience laughed several times, loudly. Seeing it all through the eyes of Ridgeley and Michael, it’s like some wild adventure, occasionally ludicrous. When they are presented with a tapestry of the Great Wall Of China, George whispers to his sidekick: “you give half to your Mum and I’ll give half to my Mum.” Lovely stuff. 

Wham! 10 Days in China is in cinemas now.