What To Know
- Andrew Ridgeley made a rare public appearance at a London screening for the new documentary WHAM! 10 Days in China.
- The documentary highlights the cultural impact of Ridgeley and George Michael’s visit.
- Since Wham!’s 1986 breakup and Michael’s death in 2016, Ridgeley has mostly lived privately.
Wham! star Andrew Ridgeley recently made a rare public appearance in honor of a documentary following his and George Michael‘s historic trip to China in 1985.
On Tuesday, July 14, Ridgeley attended a special screening of WHAM! 10 Days in China at Soho House in London. Photos from the event showed the singer, 63, wearing a dark, collared button-up shirt and white shorts. He posed next to a movie poster for the documentary, which hits theaters on July 28.
Ridgeley and Michael, a dance pop duo hailing from Hertfordshire, England, rose to fame in the ’80s with hits like “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go” and “Last Christmas.”
In April 1985, Wham! became the first Western pop group to perform in communist China, during a 10-day tour. The documentary, directed by Mike Christie, follows the cultural impact of Ridgeley and Michael’s visit — combining archival footage and new interviews to tell their story.
The childhood friends formed Wham! in 1981, rising to international fame after the release of their second album, Make It Big, in 1984. It included tracks like “Everything She Wants,” “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go,” and “Careless Whisper.”
In 1986, Wham! broke up — but not before performing a farewell concert at Wembley Stadium. Both Ridgeley and Michael went on to pursue solo music careers, although the latter found substantially more commercial success.
After trying his hand at racing in Monaco and acting in Los Angeles, Ridgeley released his only solo album, Son of Albert, in 1990, before largely stepping away from the spotlight.
Michael died at 53 in 2016, of natural causes attributed to heart and liver disease.
Through the years, Ridgeley has mostly enjoyed a private life. He has returned to the spotlight on several occasions — including when he promoted the 2023 Netflix documentary Wham! and the upcoming doc, accepting a posthumous Academy Fellowship award on behalf of Michael at the Ivor Novello Awards in May.
WHAM! 10 Days in China, hits theaters on July 28