Netflix has shared a first look trailer for the upcoming feature length Wham! documentary.
Celebrating 40 years since the eighties duo – starring George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley – made their chart breakthrough, the feature-length project hits the streamer on July 5.
“Fun and sunshine, there’s enough for everyone,” reads a post from the platform, quoting their classic hit, Club Tropicana.
“WHAM!, the new documentary film charting the global rise of pop sensations George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley, told in their own words.”
In his own post, Andrew adds: “I am delighted to bring you the news that WHAM!, the documentary film, is coming to Netflix on 5th July 2023.
“It is a genuinely authentic account of WHAM!’s meteoric ascent to success and of how WHAM! came to find such a special place in the hearts of many.”
Check out the trailer below.
The premiere of the documentary coincides with the release of Wham!’s brand-new 40th anniversary singles collection, ‘Echoes From The Edge Of Heaven’.
Formed in 1981, the duo – starring school friends Andrew Ridgeley and George Michael – became one of the most globally successful pop acts of the 1980s, selling more than thirty million records worldwide.
Over the course of four years, they released 11 singles, five of which (Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go, Freedom, Last Christmas, I’m Your Man and The Edge Of Heaven) went on to top the UK charts, with Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go, Careless Whisper and Everything She Wants – all from their second album ‘Make It Big’ (1984), also hitting No. 1 in the US.
Between their debut, 1982’s Young Guns (Go For It), and 1986’s The Edge Of Heaven, the pair became the first western group to perform in China, where two rapturously received concerts broke countless cultural barriers, before their last concert – ‘Wham! The Final’, on June 28, 1986 – saw them depart in front of seventy-two thousand people at Wembley Stadium.
The concert also included performances by their friend Elton John.
Revisiting their legacy, ‘Echoes From The Edge Of Heaven’ is due July 7 on 2LP coloured vinyl, 2LP black vinyl, CD and digital. Also available is a deluxe vinyl singles 7″ box set/10CD box set, featuring all the singles plus additional content.
‘Wham! The Singles: Echoes From The Edge Of Heaven’ is available to pre-order now. Produced by John Battsek and Simon Halfon, and directed by Chris Smith, ‘Wham!’ will premiere on July 5.