Talk:Spandau Ballet

Origin of the name "Spandau Ballet"
Apparently the name originated with the post-WW2 Spandau prison. When they hung Nazi prisoners for war crimes, their bodies were said to do the "Spandau Ballet" as they jerked on the end of the rope.

At one point, Rudolph Hess was the sole occupant of Spandau Prison, making the idea of a balet there seem incredibly gothic and creepy. This is probably way off, but has anyone compared Spandau and Spandex (hope I made you laugh...)--Tednor 06:05, 1 December 2006 (UTC)


 * I serious doubt this theory, as it decribes a feature hanging that predates the method of dropping the condemned individual from a height to break their neck rather than killing by strangulation. Dainamo (talk) 03:21, 18 November 2007 (UTC)

Also in world war one; the Spandau was the eponymus name of a gun used in the German trenches. The British troops were said to doo the spandau Ballet when they were continuously machine gunned

I can confirm that the origin of the term "Spandau Ballet" was from the WWI Western Front. As the above comment said, the Spandau gun was horrifically effective and when the bullets hit the Allied soldiers with such repetitive force the body would jerk spazmodically. With black humour the British termed this the "Spandau Ballet". I have also heard the term used in reference to Spandau prison but that is not the origin of the term. I'm unsure which usage the band took its name from. Wampusaust 01:43, 3 May 2007 (UTC)

A friend of mine in the Canadian Army (Korean War veteran) and an history and weapons afficionado, once mentioned that the "Spandau Ballet" came from the fact that if someone was repetitively hit off-centre by the particularly effective Spandau machine gun, that repetitive force of the impacts spun the victim around. This spinning was called the "Spandau Ballet", a macabre joking reference to the pirouette in ballet. Perhaps the Germans turned it into a game, see if they could get a double or triple axel out of a dead man before he crumpled? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.77.212.72 (talk) 15:27, 27 May 2008 (UTC)

Just another point: the war criminals were executed in Nuremberg, where the trials took place, not in Spandau.84.139.255.89 (talk) 13:29, 13 August 2008 (UTC)

Help for another topic
I am formulating the ideas behind the Def Classic Mix definition, and I swear I remember a version of "Gold" which was vaguely similar to this style. If anyone has it, could they please drop me a line here at my Wiki user page. If the remix were to be in that style, it would be among the very first of such treatments and very important. It's been over 20 years since I've owned or listened to it so I may be just totally off. Thanks in Advance!--Tednor 06:05, 1 December 2006 (UTC)

Martin Kemp is NOT Ross Kemp's brother!! Can someone PLEASE correct this!! Thanks

213.249.245.248 14:43, 5 January 2007 (UTC)

Song Box
In order to keep with other music articles, can someone re-arrange the singles into a box format? I don't know how. I also vote that the above comment is advertising and should be deleted. Naysie 00:18, 23 March 2007 (UTC)

Agreed re: advertising. I'm all for local bands getting their name out there but not sure whether Wikipedia, even a talk page, is the place for that. Wampusaust 01:53, 7 August 2007 (UTC)

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Trivia

 * Their song "Gold" was featured in the video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, on Wave 103, in an episode of Black Books and also in the 2006 Australian film BoyTown. A cover of the song, by Zero 7 vocalist Sophie Barker, appeared in the 2004 film Suzie Gold.
 * John Darnielle of The Mountain Goats has done a spoken word piece on his growing appreciation for them.
 * In the movie Blackadder: Back and Forth, when Baldrick mentions seeing 'Men in very short skirts', Blackadder replies by saying 'Spandau Ballet'.
 * The song 'Gold' is now a football chant at Portman Road, home of Ipswich Town FC. The chant goes "Always believe in, Alan Lee GOAL!"
 * It also became a chant familiar with Sunderland AFC fans about Julio Arca. However the words "JULIO! Oh! Always believe in your...soul," etc.
 * The song 'Diamond' plays in the background of a scene in the movie SLC Punk as a character complains of an illness he attributes to the music.
 * 'Gold' is used as the theme for "That's Gold!" on The (NRL) Footy Show in Australia, with Paul 'The Chief' Harragon singing re-written words.
 * Tony Hadley made a brief appearance in the final minute of the video for PM Dawn's 'Set Adrift on Memory Bliss'.
 * The Adam Carolla Show uses a parody Spandau Ballet's "Gold" in its innovative Gay Walking game and the song has been a recurrent topic of conversation.
 * They are mentioned in the Tim Wilson song Jeff Gordon's Gay with the lyrics "Jeff Gordon's Gay, he must be gay he's probably whistlin' Elton John or Spandau Ballet"

Name

 * However, the most likely inspiration is graffiti he saw in the lavatory of a club called The Venue, in Victoria Street, London, in the late 1970s, where members of the originally named band worked. This band had played under the name Spandau Ballet since 1978 and had played in London once under this name at the Hope & Anchor, Islington, London, on 6 May 1979 supporting The Softies. - this was unreferenced and appears to be conjecture. I've replaced it with a statement referenced from Martin Kemp's autobiography. Jammycaketin (talk) 17:40, 12 May 2009 (UTC)


 * Here's a link to a page about the other Spandau Ballet, who performed under that moniker during the period where the now-famous SB were still going by one of their earlier names: http://www.philbrodieband.com/muso_spandau-ballet.htm Shotguntony (talk) 00:46, 12 August 2012 (UTC)


 * "Dancing the Spandau Ballet" was a WWII british soldiers slang for the dancing of soldiers mown down by the German Spandau machine gun (1200 rounds per minute) - the fastest machine gun of the time - I removed this because there seem to be various theories regarding possible meanings of 'spandau ballet' and so, unless a reference can be provided, it's really only conjecture and has no place in an encyclopedia. I've heard a similar theory before, but for soldiers in WWI, not WWII, and there's also another theory that claims it's a reference to hangings in Spandau prison. In addition, if Martin Kemp's autobiography is accurate, the meaning of the term has no obvious relevance to how and why the band chose it as their name. Jammycaketin (talk) 22:16, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

'Broke America'
This was moved from article: "As with their rivals Duran Duran they 'broke America', albeit briefly."

What does this even mean? It makes no sense, and has no other sources. It's just odd. Explanation? 141.165.121.101 (talk) 02:56, 11 May 2008 (UTC)


 * They briefly featured in the American charts? --Adoniscik(t, c) 23:24, 9 January 2009 (UTC)

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.
In a press release quoted by MTV, Stewart said, "We've never had a musical performance on the show before — not because we haven't wanted one — but because we were holding out for a reunited Spandau Ballet. This will have to suffice." --213.213.135.228 (talk) 17:40, 25 March 2009 (UTC)

Spandau Ballet, back together again...
I know this is a talk page for improving the article, but I just have to say that I'm as giddy as a little schoolgirl that Spandau Ballet is back together, after 20 years. Come tour America, boys -- there's love for you here. 98.220.43.195 (talk) 23:11, 30 March 2009 (UTC)

Poorly written
I have just read the introductory paragraph and I believe that this article does not meet the stringent quality criteria on use of English.

Deanmurley (talk) 21:54, 24 April 2009 (UTC)


 * With respect, if you feel the article's poorly written, you're welcome to contribute to improving it. I've now had a look at the first two sections and I've tried to get rid of anything that was sycophantic or waffly/irrelevant. I'm certain that there's still room for improvement, but I hope the article is beginning to be a little more neutral than it was. It would be a big help if references could be added, particularly for the band's history sections, if anyone knows where to find such information. Jammycaketin (talk) 21:02, 28 April 2009 (UTC)
 * I've now had a chance to look at the whole article and I feel that it's now much easier to understand. I took the liberty of removing the various templates regarding quality, since I believe the article should now be of a reasonable quality. I also removed the templates because this is an example of drive-by tagging, which is strongly discouraged on Wikipedia. If there's a genuine issue, "the editor who adds the tag must address the issues on the talk page, pointing to specific issues that are actionable within the content policies. "Simply being of the opinion that a page is not neutral is not sufficient to justify the addition of the tag". Therefore, saying that the article doesn't meet the quality criteria isn't particularly helpful to anyone. Personally, I felt that the article was too wordy and included too much irrelevant information, which is what I changed. There were also a couple of grammar issues. However, other people may feel differently. The main problem at the moment, in my view, is the lack of sources. Jammycaketin (talk) 19:47, 5 May 2009 (UTC)

Conflict of Interest tag
I just noticed that user 92.149.42.244 tagged this article as showing a potential conflict of interest, although no mention has been made of this on the talk page. I was just wondering what this user thought was the problem with the article so that improvements can be made. Please be aware that drive-by tagging is strongly discouraged on Wikipedia. The person who adds the tag is expected to start a relevant discussion on the article's talk page so that any problems can be resolved. Thank you. Jammycaketin (talk) 11:07, 20 September 2009 (UTC)

List of awards and nominations received by Spandau Ballet
I suggest that the above artcile be merged into Spandau Ballet. Jezhotwells (talk) 18:51, 17 December 2009 (UTC)


 * it is a very short stub that could be easily worked into this article. badmachine (talk) 11:56, 14 March 2010 (UTC)


 * I Support this idea. Thank you, --Patriot8790 (talk) 13:55, 9 April 2010 (UTC)
 * As the content had been merged my something I have redirected that article and removed the merge heading ftom this article. Rambo's Revenge (talk)  19:12, 1 July 2010 (UTC)

Former names
the article for Gary Kemp states that one of the former names for spandau ballet was The Gentry. this article mentions only The Cut and The Makers. could they have had three different names before settling on Spandau Ballet? badmachine (talk) 11:56, 14 March 2010 (UTC)

Reunion section
One line of this section is very poorly written and contains opinions without sources. I recommend complete removal of the line which reads as "It is expected a new studio album this year. Guest starring on this new album will be Lucy Alford, the most talented electric triangle player ever known.". Perhaps the first part could be rewritten to read "A new studio album is expected this year." However, no year is mentioned. Is this 2009 or 2010? Indeed, in x years time will people be expecting another album based on this Wikipedia entry? The second part of the sentence is completely unnecessary and makes me think it was added by Lucy Alford's mother. If "the most talented electric triangle player ever known" is a quote then please reference it appropriately. Otherwise this does not belong in this article. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 148.79.162.144 (talk) 14:28, 6 May 2010 (UTC)

Timing Clarification, Please
My apologies if I am not following protocols, but I'd like to find out how to get this article flagged for editing help from the wiki community. My concern is with the beginning of the "Formation and early successes" section. Please allow me to paste below:

''The band was formed in 1976 as The Cut, with Gary Kemp and Steve Norman on guitar, later saxophone and percussion. Kemp and Norman were attending Dame Alice Owen's School, Potters Bar, and were close friends, as they shared a similar interest in music and a common desire to form a band. They were joined by fellow student John Keeble, who met Norman when he stored his drum kit in the school's music room; they met regularly at lunchtimes to practise. They were joined by bass player Michael Ellison, and by Tony Hadley, who knew Norman, as lead singer. After a few months, Richard Miller replaced Michael Ellison on bass, before Kemp's younger brother, Martin Kemp, took over the role a couple of years later. By this time, the band had already gained some live experience. Steve Dagger, a close school friend of the band members, was asked by Steve Norman and Gary Kemp to manage them. He was to be an integral part of the band's success.''

''The band changed its name to the The Makers in 1976 as a punk band and played at the Roxy in the early years.[1] In 1978 they became a power pop band and changed the name to Gentry and played a small number of gigs, including at Kingsway College. They changed the band's name to Spandau Ballet after a friend of the band, journalist and DJ Robert Elms, saw the phrase 'Spandau Ballet' scrawled on the wall of a nightclub lavatory during a visit to Berlin.''

I'm having difficulty following the timing here. How can the band have been formed in 1976 in the first paragraph, and after all of the events in the remainder of the paragraph we find that in the start of the second paragraph it's still 1976 and they are changing the band's name again.

Perhaps those in the Spandau Ballet fan base will note a flag asking for editing help and contribute.

In Service.Ststeve11 (talk) 13:34, 22 August 2015 (UTC)

Name Origin Correction
I removed the following statement because it is false: "The name also refers to Spandau Prison and the many hangings there, especially in 1945–46 of Nazi war criminals, when those being hanged would twitch and jump at the end of a rope.[7]"

No Nazi war criminals were executed at the Spandau Prison after the conclusion of World War 2. Not by hanging or by any other method of execution. Seven Nazis were imprisoned there, some for many years. However none of them were sentenced to death, they were sentenced to prison.

All of the Nazis found guilty and sentenced to death at the Nuremberg Trials had their death sentences carried out by hanging in the gymnasium at the Nuremberg Prison 275 miles/445 km distant from Spandau prison.

There are many World War I articles, and memoirs that refer to the "Spandau Ballet." They are all referring to the German MG08 "Spandau" machine gun, and its devastating effect on an exposed soldier caught in a burst of fire. The spinning of the torso, and the flailing of the arms and legs was called the Spandau ballet as macabre form of gallows humor by the WW1 soldiers. Kyle kursk (talk) 15:08, 28 October 2017 (UTC)Kyle Kursk

Band have split again.
86.41.149.167 (talk) 17:57, 23 May 2019 (UTC)

Shouldn't members of the band be mentioned in the intro
Influencers are. You have to scroll down to get to the band members? 88.159.245.150 (talk) 22:40, 29 June 2022 (UTC)