In early 1986, Wham! sent shockwaves through the pop world when George Michael first announced the English duo would be breaking up. The announcement came on the heels of rampant speculation about Michael and bandmate Andrew Ridgeley’s relationship, with many assuming that a deteriorating friendship was the cause for the split. The logistics of the first announcement paired with the press’ tendency to sensationalize led to even more rumors and assumptions.
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However, Michael maintained that he and Ridgeley were attempting to make the “most amicable split in pop history.” We revisit their historic decision on the 39th anniversary of their announcement.
How International Crossed Wires Led To A Narrative Switch
Shortly after the first press release regarding Wham!’s dissolution went public, one-half of the British pop duo, George Michael, visited Aspel & Company to discuss the news on March 1, 1986. “What actually happened was about seven months ago, Andrew [Ridgeley] and I decided that…what we wanted to achieve four years ago when we formed the band had been just about achieved. Whatever we do from now on will be a matter of maintaining and making sure that people don’t get a chance to say we’re finished.”
“We thought that isn’t really the way we wanted it to carry on,” Michael continued. “So, we decided that we’d record a few more singles, and we’d like to play Wembley Stadium this summer, and then we were going to actually make an announcement.” Before they carried out their last musical projects together, Michael wanted to announce his split from their management company, Nomis Management. Ridgeley, on the other hand, hadn’t yet decided to split from Nomis.
During his Aspel & Company appearance, Michael said that he tried to get in touch with Ridgeley before releasing his statement about Nomis. But Ridgeley was racing cars in Monaco and hadn’t left his number with anyone (Michael added, “which is fairly typical of Andrew”) and was virtually unreachable. Michael released his statement without speaking to Ridgeley first, creating a one-sided narrative onto which the press quickly latched. Instead of an announcement of Michael’s departure from Nomis, the press framed it as a departure from Wham! While, of course, the latter was true, Michael insisted the band never intended to release that information until months later.
George Michael Insisted Wham! Split Was Amicable
Scandals sell, and nothing says scandal quite like two friends’ relationship deteriorating to the point of them breaking up their band. Such rumors quickly began swirling around the Wham! split, but George Michael insisted they were just that—rumors. “There’s absolutely no rift whatsoever between the two of us,” Michael told Aspel & Company host Michael Aspel. “It’s just something that the press have been waiting for for so long. I think it should be the most amicable split in pop history if we do it properly.”
In a 1986 interview with Rock! Michael said their decision to break up Wham! was more artistic than personal. “It’s not that we don’t want to still make records, we do occasionally,” he said. “But I’m not 18 anymore. Andrew [Ridgeley] is not 18 anymore. Gradually, as we get older, the whole thing starts to become more and more forced in terms of sticking to the original formula that Wham! was supposed to be. I suppose it is just time to call it a day before it becomes, you know, really fake. We know we wouldn’t be enjoying it another year or in two years’ time. So, we thought we would quit while we’re ahead.”
“There is no point in saying that we are not splitting,” he added, “but there is a lot of point in saying that we are still friends. That’s what most people saw as a main attraction in the group anyway.”
Photo by Michael Putland/Getty Images
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