Four decades after he and George Michael became the first western pop act to tour the country, Ridgeley recalls silent gigs, awkward embassy receptions \u2013 and the \u2018bloody ludicrous\u2019 hiring of Lindsay Anderson as director<\/p>\n
There has always been something surreal about Wham!\u2019s 1985 trip to China. George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley looked like alien visitors on the streets of Beijing, their bouffant hair and flamboyant outfits setting them apart from the Mao jackets and drab uniforms of the Chinese people they encountered.<\/p>\n
Now the full strangeness of the duo\u2019s brief trip, which made them the first western pop act to play in the country, is explored in a fascinating documentary film, Wham! 10 Days in China. Using previously unseen archive footage and featuring new interviews with many of the people involved in the tour, it shows the extraordinary impact Wham!\u2019s two concerts had on their Chinese audience, as well as providing a snapshot of a country on the brink of great change.<\/p>\n
![](\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/61fa146c121e575a6501a779068fbae089267556\/0_564_3123_2496\/master\/3123.jpg?width=140&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=94fd7c7bdeea289517a38302b34e0057\" "\\"\u2018I")
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