Wham! Ten Days in China Review – A Trip Back in Time, Entertaining Musical Docu-Drama

Details: Category: Haute This Issue; Published on Wednesday, 15 July 2026 11:09; Written by Janet Walker

Wham! Ten Days in China, from Trafalgar Releasing, presents a previously unreleased documentary of the historic trip by pop duo Wham!, who were just breaking in the UK and ready to take on the world.

George Michael, and Andrew Ridgeley were pop superstars in the UK. They had four back-to-back hits in the top five, two which reached number one on the Billboard charts. And they wanted to be the biggest pop stars in America.

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To hear it explained, playing China was a strategy, the duo wanted to rule the charts in America, where they were not well known and didn't want to spend (or waste) time playing small venues. They wanted to sell out arenas, in a country where they were barely known. They needed a big, huge public relations strategy, something that would guarantee everyone in America would know who they were, so the idea of being the first Western pop act to play China was born.

Wham! Ten Days in China follows them as they arrive first in the nations capital of Beijing. Of course, any trip like this would be a chance for the Chinese government to present themselves to the world, which included diplomatic dinners, speeches, and press.

As we find out early, the Chinese government wasn't open to the idea of Western culture coming into the country. At the time Hong Kong was still under British rule, which made the sentiment somewhat easier, but even with that, mainland China was still a rigid communistic regime.

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From the beginning, George and Andrew, both of whom were in their early 20s, had little patience and worse, no foreign media training, and this was a time when Fleet Street was all about sensationalism. Small nothing stories were often blown out of proportion with huge wartime headlines. However, even as they were superstars at home that did not translate well in China and didn't temper their comments or care to understand the symbolic gestures of the Chinese government.

Worse, of course, for them was the belief that all Chinese did not understand English. The first show, in Beijing, was challenging. The Chinese state police still ruled with an iron fist, and while some in the audience wanted to dance and vibe with the concert, it was strictly forbidden.

While the audience energy from the Beijing show was less than enthusiastic, the following day's press conference was worse. And as the camera panned a UK reporters notes that it seemed that the UK press knew George was gay. They also had the big career push when they were on CBS from China. The plan was working. The press they were receiving from the China trip was creating a brand build-up in America.

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The Guangzhou show, being nearer to Hong Kong and able to pick up television and radio signals, created an entirely different atmosphere. The audience energy was higher and closer to what they expected.

I think that was the central issue with the trip: Wham had expectations. They expected a culture closer to their own, and if they didn't that didn't show. The trip, however, achieved its objective, despite the expectations, the culture and language problems, and the constant surveillance that weighed heavily on members of the band, some more than others. The singular expectation of turning themselves into the biggest pop band in the world was met.

Throughout the documentary, as it is filmed in 1985 reflects a China in the 1980s. Photo ops on the Chinese Wall, which is magnificent, were part of the package. As we are told, during the first concert in Beijing, the contrast between 1980s China and contemporary, modern, times, was captured as they entered the Great Wall Hotel, filled with British businessmen and women, decorated with a well-appointed lobby, while outside, the citizens were still wearing dark clothing, mirroring images of the Chinese worker posters, some cars, mostly bicycles and still many horse-drawn wagons.

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Other light hearted moments, the day after the arrived in Guangzhou they arranged a football (soccer) match, and the game, exercise, and fun, seem to break the oppressive spirit that followed them through Beijing.

The documentary, which could also be called docu-drama, as we discover the trip was riddled with problems, a famous director injured his leg and was confined to a wheelchair, one member of the band attempted suicide, clashes of culture, strained media relations, fissures breaking up the united front, and through it all, at each show George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley played a dozen songs and as we hear from attendees, the show was a life changing moment for everyone.

Wham! made history as the first Western pop act to perform in communist China. George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley's concerts in Beijing and Guangzhou were a cultural milestone – East meets West, music meets politics. Now, newly restored footage reveals the untold story of the iconic tour that helped launch Wham! to global superstardom.

An entertaining trip back in time, Wham! Ten Days in China opens in theaters July 28, 2026. See it.

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Country: China, UK.

Language: English, Chinese, with English subtitles.

Runtime: 90 minutes.

Director: Mike Christie.

Producer: Alice Popplewell, Ian Sharpe, Tanya Shaw, Krista Wegener.

Cast: George Michael, Andrew Ridgeley.

Janet Walker is the publisher, founder, and sole owner of Haute-Lifestyle.com. A graduate of New York University, she has been covering international news through the Beltway Insider, a weekly review of the nation's top stories, for more than a decade. A general beat writer/reporter and entertainment/film critic, she is also an accomplished news/investigative news/crime reporter and submitted for Pulitzer Prize consideration "Cops Conspire to Deep Six Sex Assaults" in the Breaking News Category and was persuaded to withdraw the submission. Ms. Walker has completed five screenplays "The Six Sides of Truth," "The Assassins of Fifth Avenue," "The Wednesday Killer," "The Manhattan Project," and the sci-fi thriller "Project 13: The Last Day." She has also published "Unholy Alliances: A True Crime Story," and "Days, Times, Seasons, and Events: A Collection of Poetry & Prose," which can be purchased here. She is a member of the Los Angeles Press Club, the National Writers Union, and a member of the International Federation of Journalists.