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Duran Duran (Nick Rhodes; Andy Taylor; Simon Le Bon; John Taylor; Roger Taylor)

1 of 6 portraits of Nick Rhodes

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© Andy Earl

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Duran Duran (Nick Rhodes; Andy Taylor; Simon Le Bon; John Taylor; Roger Taylor)

by Andy Earl
chromogenic print, 1981
15 1/2 in. x 18 7/8 in. (395 mm x 480 mm)
Given by Andy Earl, 1999
Photographs Collection
NPG x88186

Sittersback to top

Artistback to top

  • Andy Earl (1955-), Photographer and film-maker. Artist or producer of 4 portraits, Sitter in 1 portrait.

This portraitback to top

Taking their name from the villain in the movie Barbarella, starring Jane Fonda, Duran Duran enjoyed huge global fame and were one of the most successful and influential groups of the 1980s. The band were a part of the New Romantic music-wave, with looks and sounds to match. They found fame with their first release Planet Earth in 1981. Other huge hits followed including Girls on Film, Rio, Hungry Like a Wolf, The Reflex, Save a Prayer and Wild Boys. They have continued making music through the 90's though having lost some band members at various points. After a long absence from the music scene, the band re-formed in 2003 and has been successfully touring with all the original group band members, still appealing to old fans and new generations of fans.

Events of 1981back to top

Current affairs

Prince Charles marries Lady Diana Spencer at St Paul's Cathedral. A crowd of 600,000 spectators filled the streets to catch a glimpse of the Royal couple, and 750 million viewers watched the event on television. The iconic moment came when Charles and Diana appeased the crowds by breaking royal protocol and kissing on the balcony of Buckingham Palace.

Art and science

Andrew Lloyd-Webber's musical Cats, based on T. S. Eliot's Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats, opens in the West End. The show ran for 21 years.
Brideshead Revisited, the 1945 novel by Evelyn Waugh, is adapted for television by John Mortimer. The lavish production featured an all-star cast of Jeremy Irons, Anthony Andrews, Laurence Olivier, Claire Bloom and John Gielgud, setting the bar high for future TV costume dramas.

International

Pope John Paul II is shot by a Turkish gunman in St Peter's Square in Rome. John Paul was rushed to hospital where he recovered, and Mehmet Ali Agca was caught and sentenced to life imprisonment.
HIV AIDS is identified in five men in Los Angeles.

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