New Documentary to Explore WHAM!'s Historic Visit to China in 1985

 A new documentary film is exploring the history of WHAM!’s 1985 visit to China, spotlighting the band's performances in Beijing and Guangzhou. Titled WHAM! 10 Days In China, the film will release in cinemas worldwide, in partnership with Event Cinema distributor Trafalgar Releasing, on July 28.

Tickets will officially go on sale from June 24 at 2 pm BST here. WHAM! 10 Days in China, in association with the BBC, will be broadcast on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer later this summer. 

Billed as the first Western pop group to perform in China, WHAM!’s concerts in Beijing and Guangzhou introduced live pop music to audiences under strict guidelines at the time. The tour marked a pivotal cultural moment for WHAM!, expanding the band’s international profile and cementing their global reach. 

Drawing on restored, newly digitized and never-before-seen archive footage, alongside interviews with those who experienced the tour firsthand, the film revisits this moment through the eyes of the band, their team and Chinese audiences encountering Western pop culture for the first time. 

George Michael Entertainment and the George Michael estate said, “We are proud to be a part of this re-examination of what was a bold, brave foray into unknown territory both political and cultural some 40 years after the event took place. We hope that existing fans of WHAM! and those not so familiar with the China adventure will find this film as fascinating and thought provoking as we did during the making of the film.”

WHAM! 10 Days in China is produced by Supercollider (a Zinc Media Company) and directed by Mike Christie. It is executive produced by Krista Wegener, Ian Sharpe (for Sony Music Vision) and Tanya Shaw (for Supercollider). Sony Music Vision is the distributor in partnership with Trafalgar Releasing, handling theatrical distribution, and the film is in association with Sony Music Entertainment UK and the BBC.