British singer, George Michael has last Christmas, dies aged 53

British singer George Michael dies aged 53

What you need to know:

  • He was best known for his hit song "Careless Whisper", "Club Tropicana", "Last Christmas", "Wake Me Up Before You Go Go" and "Faith".
  • Michael was born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou to a Greek Cypriot father and English mother in north London in 1963.
  • Michael came out as gay in 1998 after being arrested for committing a lewd act in the public toilet.
  • In 2013 when he had to be airlifted to hospital after falling out of his chauffeur-driven Range Rover.

British pop singer George Michael, who rose to fame with the band Wham! and sold more than 100 million albums in his career, has died aged 53, his publicist said on Sunday.

"It is with great sadness that we can confirm our beloved son, brother and friend George passed away peacefully at home over the Christmas period," his publicist said in a statement.

"The family would ask that their privacy be respected at this difficult and emotional time. There will be no further comment at this stage," the publicist said.

Michael was due to release a documentary in 2017 after years of living as a virtual recluse in which he hit the headlines for a series of bizarre incidents linked to drugs.

HIT SONGS

He was best known for his hit songs "Careless Whisper", "Club Tropicana", "Last Christmas", "Wake Me Up Before You Go Go" and "Faith".

"2016 - loss of another talented soul. All our love and sympathy to George Michael's family," the band Duran Duran, which were 1980s contemporaries of Wham!, said on their official Twitter account.

Former BBC Radio One disc jockey Tony Blackburn said: "Unbelievable, George Michael has died at the age of 53. RIP.

This dreadful year goes on and on. So sad, a real talent".

DAVID BOWIE

Several iconic British musicians have died in 2016 including David Bowie in January and Status Quo guitarist Rich Parfitt, who died in a Spanish hospital on Saturday.

Michael was born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou to a Greek Cypriot father and English mother in north London in 1963.

He met Andrew Ridgeley at high school and the pair went on to form Wham! in 1981.

2008 LEWD ACT

With their good looks, perma-tans, highlighted hair and hedonistic image, the duo captured the go-getting spirit of the age and fast became one of Britain's biggest pop acts.

In 1985, Wham! became the first major Western band to perform in China as it was slowly beginning to open up to the outside world under reformist leader Deng Xiaoping.

Following years of speculation over his sexuality, Michael came out as gay in 1998 after being arrested for committing a lewd act in the public toilet of a Los Angeles park.

It was the first of several incidents that were to overshadow his musical career in his later years.

POLICE CAUTIONS

He notched up police cautions for cannabis and crack cocaine possession and in 2010 was sentenced to eight weeks in jail after crashing his car into a London shop while under the influence of cannabis and prescription medication.

In 2011, he spent several weeks in hospital in Vienna after contracting pneumonia, later saying he had been close to death.

There were fresh concerns in 2013 when he had to be airlifted to hospital after falling out of his chauffeur-driven Range Rover as it travelled at high speed on a motorway.