Andrew Ridgeley reveals what happened the last time he saw George Michael

10 July 2023, 14:42

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By Giorgina Ramazzotti

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The Wham! star revealed what he and George Michael got up to the last time they saw each other.

Andrew Ridgeley has opened up about the last time he saw best friend and bandmate George Michael.

The singer reminisced about his relationship with George as he marked the release of the new Netflix documentary based on their joint career, Wham!.

The film follows the pair for four years in the 1980s when George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley were some of the most famous faces in the world.

The film follows the pair for the four years in the 1980s when George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley were some of the most famous faces in the world. Picture: Getty

The singer reminisced about his relationship with George as he marked the release of the new Netflix documentary based on their joint-career, Wham!. — Andrew Ridgeley reminisced about his relationship with George as he marked the release of the new Netflix documentary based on their joint-career, Wham!. Picture: Getty

From their first show-stopping appearance on Top of the Pops in 1982, to their huge Wembley Stadium farewell concert in 1986, Andrew and George were inseparable and were a huge support for each other through their meteoric rise to fame.

However, in an interview with People Andrew Ridgeley revealed the surprisingly wholesome past time he and George Michael engaged in, the very last time the pair saw one another.

Shortly before George's untimely death on December 25, 2016, Andrew revealed the pair played Scrabble.

"He’d beaten me the week before, and I was exacting my revenge," the singer recalled.

"It took us right back to just… the essence of our schoolboy friendship and one-upmanship. It was a game that stimulated him, and me also."

Photo of Andrew RIDGELEY and George MICHAEL and WHAM! Picture: Getty

The interview comes just days after Andrew said how when George died it had left "a void in his life" in an interview with The Big Issue.

Reflecting on what he would do with his old friend if he were still alive, Andrew said fondly: "I’d love to just have a sit-down lunch again, to chat and play scrabble with Yog."

Talking about George's death, Andrew says he was in total shock upon hearing the news his best friend and bandmate had died.

"When I found out it was a moment of disbelief. I think that’s a very good way of putting it," he said.

"I think anyone finds it difficult to comprehend when someone they’re so close to passes away, it’s an inconceivable moment. It leaves a void in your life."

In an interview with to The New York Times, Ridgeley set the record straight about the ending of Wham!, stating that the group didn&squot;t break-up, but rather the pair "brought Wham! to a close in a manner of our own choosing". — In an interview with to The New York Times, Ridgeley set the record straight about the ending of Wham!, stating that the group didn't break-up, but rather the pair "brought Wham! to a close in a manner of our own choosing". Picture: Getty

For Andrew, the ending of Wham!&squot;s was a new beginning where the pair where "no longer living in each other’s pockets". — For Andrew, the ending of Wham!'s was a new beginning where the pair where "no longer living in each other’s pockets". Picture: Getty

In an interview with to The New York Times, Ridgeley set the record straight about the ending of Wham!, stating that the group didn't break-up, but rather the pair "brought Wham! to a close in a manner of our own choosing".

For Andrew, the ending of Wham!'s was a new beginning where the pair were "no longer living in each other’s pockets".

Despite this "their bond was fixed", the article states.

"The only thing I ever wanted to do from the age of 14 was to be in a band, write songs and perform," Ridgeley said adding that being famous or a celebrity “were never a motivating factor for either of us.”

Looking back at his success, he struggles to comprehend that he and George Michael had once reached the lofty heights of fame equal to some of the biggest idols of the day.

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"I could never quite really get that we had achieved the same kind of success as the artists that we revered like gods when we were growing up," he said.

"We were playing Wembley Stadium, the same place Elton John played. You can say, 'I am the same'. But in your own mind, you’re never the same."

Andrew did add that he was never surprised by George's rise to success, saying his best friend and bandmate was "one of the finest, if not the finest, singing voices of his generation."