‘The police were scared there would be riots’: When Wham! took Western pop to China 

The CIA wanted them to spy as well as perform. The Communist Party insisted that fans were not to dance to them or learn their ways. Forty years ago, George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley were the first Western band to tour China – Mark Beaumont revisits an event that influenced both Cantopop and the rebellion in Tiananmen Square

Apr 6, 2025 - 06:58
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‘The police were scared there would be riots’: When Wham! took Western pop to China 

The CIA wanted them to spy as well as perform. The Communist Party insisted that fans were not to dance to them or learn their ways. Forty years ago, George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley were the first Western band to tour China – Mark Beaumont revisits an event that influenced both Cantopop and the rebellion in Tiananmen Square