Five years ago the music world lost one of its most beloved artists and figures, George Michael, who passed away at the age of just 53.
The singer, best known for his solo career and as a part of the pop duo Wham! did not shy away from voicing his opinions and political beliefs in later life and a recently resurfaced clip demonstrates that perfectly.
In 2003, Michael appeared on the BBC World show Hard Talk where he was interviewed by Tim Sebastian. The conversation aired a few months after Michael had released his anti-Iraq war song ‘Shoot the Dog’ which was highly critical of both then US president George W Bush and then UK prime minister Tony Blair.
Michael’s passion for standing up against a conflict that he believed was wrong and how his opinions on Blair’s Labour had changed is evident in the clip, which has recently resurfaced on social media as people reflect on the singer’s life five years on from his death.
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Fucking yes pic.twitter.com/FMJLgHY6ka
— Nooruddean (@BeardedGenius) December 24, 2021
He admits that he had been “distressed by Mr. Blair’s behaviour for several years,” and believes that the former PM had “removed the idealism from politics.” He also compared the government’s foreign policy to “pre-emptive action” which he believed was “every bit as dangerous a concept as the initial concept of creating the atomic bomb.”
Perhaps one of the funniest parts of the interview was when Sebastian asks Michael about a now-famous party at Downing Street in the ‘Cool Britannia’ era after Blair was elected that was attended by the likes of Noel Gallagher from Oasis.
Michael adamantly states that he wasn’t at the party and also never supported the idea of ‘Cool Britannia.’ He says: “No. You’re not talking to some Noel Gallagher here or somebody from the Britpop age. You’re talking to somebody who started 21 years ago. Cool Britannia is a lot of b**locks to me.”
Five year’s on from Michael’s untimely passing the clip has been widely shared on Twitter, as people remember that man’s music, as well as his passionate views and activism, are both sorely missed.
"You're not talking to Noel Gallagher, Cool Britannia was a load of bollocks to me"
— Secret Drug Addict (@ScrtDrugAddict) December 24, 2021
George Michael pic.twitter.com/FMnWQpVgH1
Lost 5 years ago today. Rest in peace king 👑 pic.twitter.com/XZDRhKdsVD
— Michael Walker (@michaeljswalker) December 25, 2021
hero. miss George every day. RIP https://t.co/IFDDUUDrd7
— ཊལབསརངཧ (@David_Rudnick) December 24, 2021
George Michael speaking his mind about Tony Blair's support of the invasion of Iraq on the pretence of weapons of mass destruction. Good man George. Out of curiosity, what pop stars speak out today? https://t.co/ooFF2fuFy1
— Steve Wall 🇵🇸🇮🇪 (@stevethewall) December 25, 2021
The entire interview is still available on YouTube, the first part of which you can view in the embed below.
