Description

George is the story of two lives - the private man and the public legend. Georgios Panayiotou was seventeen when he told friends that from now on, he was going to adopt the stage name of George Michael. Sometimes his two worlds would collide with shattering consequences. In George, Sunday Times bestselling biographer Sean Smith has gone back to the neighbourhoods of suburban North London to trace an astonishing journey that saw a sensitive but determined boy grow up to be one of the biggest British pop stars of all time. Along the way he has talked to those close to him to reveal the real man - funny, articulate, intelligent and generous spirited - who hid behind the powerful image he created. He reveals the complex relationship with his high achieving Greek Cypriot father; the unconditional love of his mother; his teenage relationships with girls and his first tragic love affair with another man. He traces the rise of George Michael from the first faltering steps at a recording studio in a Hertfordshire village, to the famous Wham! tour of China and then, as a number one solo artist who conquered America. And he describes how the world seem to turn against George; how he sought consolation in drugs after the loss of his mum to cancer; his notorious `coming out' and how he ended up in jail following an infamous car crash. His health failed him until his untimely death aged just 53 last Christmas Day. Affectionate yet honest and moving, George is both a celebration of the music of George Michael and a lasting tribute to a decent man.

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