Wham! doc reveals why George Michael hid his sexuality for so long
nypost.comGeorge Michael came out to the world after he was arrested by an undercover policeman for engaging in a lewd act in a public bathroom.But, long before that scandalous outing occurred at Will Rogers Memorial Park in Beverly Hills, the late ’80s pop heartthrob revealed his sexuality to his Wham!
mate Andrew Ridgeley. It was July 1983 — a year before the chart-topping duo first went No. 1 with “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go.”They had just wrapped filming the video for their post-disco single “Club Tropicana” in Ibiza, Spain.“About six months before … I’d actually had something go on that made my attraction to men fairly clear,” Michael reveals in “Wham!
The Documentary,” which premieres on Netflix July 5. “Once I realized that this was a part of my sexuality that I couldn’t ignore, I went to come out to Andrew.”While Ridgeley says that his childhood friend’s confession “had absolutely no bearing” on their relationship, he and Wham!
background singer Shirlie Holliman discouraged Michael from coming out to his family.“I said I was gonna talk to my mom and dad and was persuaded in no uncertain terms that it really wasn’t the best idea,” Michael says in the doc. “I don’t think they were trying to protect my career or their careers.
