Yahoo News Wham! star Andrew Ridgeley attacks 'mucky' Channel 5 documentary about George Michael
George Michael's former Wham! partner Andrew Ridgeley has criticised Channel 5 for airing a "mucky" documentary before his funeral took place.
Andrew Ridgeley posted on Twitter on Thursday - when the show titled The Last Days of George Michael was aired - and called it "sensationalist and mucky".
He claimed the channel had been “insensitive, contemptuous and reprehensible” and should have waited until after Michael's funeral to air the programme.
½ @channel5_tv 2 conceive such a sensationalist & mucky piece of voyeurism may be par 4 the course for u, the decision to air b4 GM’s https://t.co/z50kNd4vZf
— Andrew Ridgeley (@ajridgeley) March 23, 2017
2/2 funeral is insensitive, contemptuous & reprehensible. U might have the had decency 2 schedule post funeral & after a respectful period https://t.co/z50kNd4vZf
— Andrew Ridgeley (@ajridgeley) March 23, 2017
Channel 5, however, has defended its decision and said the show was "a measured account" of the star's life, the BBC reports.
"George Michael was a high-profile public figure and there has been legitimate public interest in the circumstances surrounding his death," it said in a statement.
It said the documentary was "based on contributions from those who knew him and reported on him over many decades".
It was confirmed earlier in March that Michael - born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou - died on Christmas Day as a result of heart and liver disease.
