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Later this week Netflix will release Wham!, a new documentary on the band of the same name, looking back on the relationship between band members George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley.
The legendary pop duo burned brightly but only for a short amount of time – they formed in 1981 and split five years later in 1986, but not before holding an epic final concert at Wembley Stadium.
Looking back on the band’s legacy, Ridgeley has revealed Michael was keen to revisit the band at one point to bring another album to life – but ultimately decided against it.
Wham! released two full-length albums during their tenure: 1983’s Fantastic and 1984’s Make It Big. They also released Music from the Edge of Heaven in North America, but it was mostly a compilation record.
Ridgeley told the LA Times: “He talked for some time about doing a third Wham! album. But I think he understood that we’d just be going over the same ground.”
Ridgeley and Michael felt that the band had achieved everything they had set out to do, so bringing more music to the world did not interest them.
“As we achieved our goals,” he said. “We came to understand that Wham! was about the exuberance and vitality of youth, and it couldn’t really develop into adulthood.”
He said that Wham! “couldn’t age”. And then when Michael asked him an important question, he felt as if he knew the end was near for the band.
Ridgeley said: “When [Michael] asked me to consent to him releasing Careless Whisper as a solo record, we knew that was the first step on his solo path.”
Ridgeley also spoke candidly about learning of his bandmate’s death.
George Michael was found dead in bed at his home in Goring-on-Thames on Christmas Day, 2016. He was 53-years-old.
Michael’s death was attributed to “dilated cardiomyopathy with myocarditis and a fatty liver”.
Ridgeley said of the star’s death: “When I found out [George had died] it was a moment of disbelief. I think that’s a very good way of putting it. I think anyone finds it difficult to comprehend when someone they’re so close to passes away, it’s an inconceivable moment. It leaves a void in your life.
“I’d love to just sit and have a sit-down lunch again, to chat and play Scrabble with Yog again.”
Wham! hits Netflix on Wednesday.
