WHAM IN CHINA
A CULTURAL EVOLUTION
Boys abroad: Andrew and George at the Great Wall of China. Despite the visit’s heavily-controlled atmosphere, Chinese people genuinely recognise the concerts as a pop awakening for the country
© Martyn Goddard/REX/Shutterstock
© Martyn Goddard/REX/Shutterstock
When George and Andrew touched down in China in April 1985 to perform a pair of historic concerts, they were poised to deliver an enormous culture shock to a country still emerging from the trauma of the Cultural Revolution. Scheduled as part of their worldwide The Big Tour, the concerts were the result of 18 months of Wham! manager Simon Napier-Bell’s attempts to persuade the Communist authorities that the country was ready for Western pop culture, and that it would be beneficial for China as it opened to the world and tried to attract foreign investment.