Frankie Goes to Hollywood

Frankie Goes To Hollywood (FGTH) was one of the biggest, most controversial and most marketed UK pop acts of the 1980s. The band was fronted by Liverpudlian singer Holly Johnson, and was supported by Paul Rutherford along with Peter Gill, Mark O'Toole and Brian Nash. Its debut single "Relax" was famously banned by the BBC and subsequently topped the UK singles chart. Along with "Two Tribes" and "The Power of Love", FGTH became only the second band in the history of the UK charts to reach number one with their first three singles.

Reunion and comeback

In 2003, the VH-1 program Bands Reunited brought Johnson, Rutherford, Gill, O'Toole and Nash together from the far corners of the world in hopes of their performing on the show. By all appearances the bandmates got on well enough and enjoyed seeing one another again, but none of them seemed particularly surprised when Johnson scuttled the envisioned mini-concert with his (literal) last-minute refusal to perform with the rest of the band.

Related Topics:
2003 - VH-1 - Bands Reunited

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To celebrate the 25th anniversary of Trevor Horn's involvement in the music industry, in 2004 a special concert took place at Wembley Arena in November which featured four of the FGTH personnel. Once again the exception was Johnson, who announced via the Internet that he would not be appearing, and who stuck to this decision despite much worldwide protest from fans yearning to see the five play together again. The band held an open audition for a new singer for the concert and recruited Ryan Molloy as a result, denying O'Toole an opportunity for a rematch of his dust-up with Johnson at that same venue some seventeen years prior.

Related Topics:
2004 - November - Internet

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Brian "Nasher" Nash also declined to take part in the concert for his own reasons.

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The same lineup (with Molloy, and without Johnson or Nash) reunited for a tour in 2005, following an appearance on the VH-1 show Bands Reunited. They headlined at Faceparty's Big Gay Out festival.

Related Topics:
2005 - VH-1 - Bands Reunited - Faceparty - Big Gay Out

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The new line has played several other gigs including Northampton, Pili Pili festival, Amsterdam and Monte Carlo and intend to play a UK wide tour in Oct 05, details on the new frankie website www.frankiesay.com

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