On August 19th, Neil and Chris meet by chance in an electronics shop on the Kings Road. Realizing they have a common interest in dance music, they begin to write together. Initially they call themselves West End; later they come up with the name Pet Shop Boys, a name derived from some friends who work in a pet shop in Ealing. “We thought it sounded like an English rap group”.
Prince performs the first of several nights of sold-out shows at London’s Wembley Arena. Neil and Chris attend the concert as well as a party thrown afterward by Prince himself.
Liza Minnelli’s ‘Losing My Mind,’ produced by PSB, is released.
Cicero’s ‘Heaven Must Have Sent You Back to Me’ appears on the Boys’ own label, Spaghetti.
‘Se A Vida E’ is released as a single.
Chris and Neil fly to Spain for an evening appearance at the Creamfields Festival.
The Pet Shop Boys conclude their ‘Fundamental Tour proper’ (though a few sporadic shows follow using similar staging and setlists) with a performance in Tokyo. Afterward they go on holiday for a while.
The Boys perform live at the closing ceremonies of the Olympics in London. Because they must share the spotlight with a great many other U.K. artists (the theme is ‘A Symphony of British Music’), they get to do only one song: ‘West End Girls.’
The Super Tour comes to Zadar, Croatia.