12RX034 Please (pt1)

About this episode

The episode explores the origins of the Pet Shop Boys and their debut album 'Please' as part of its 40th-anniversary celebration.

Unboxing the opening chapter of their 40th-anniversary super deluxe celebration of Please, Graham and Chris rewind to PSB Year Zero - the moment an “ex-Smash Hits journalist” met a “weird architect” and began politely reshaping pop. They trace the stories of five pivotal Please people who helped turn Neil and Chris into Pet Shop Boys: eight-track mentor Ray Roberts; Hi-NRG maverick Bobby O, maximalist manager Tom Watkins; rock-steady producer Stephen Hague; and legendary vocalist and Dylan collaborator Helena Springs. Along they way, they tell the full, cinematic origin stories of West End Girls and Opportunities - from knee-slapping demos and New York studio bills to T.S. Eliot, sealed trains and chart-dodging false starts - and share their own first steps into PSB fandom. It’s the beginning of a two-part deep dive into the album that started everything. Plus: stay tuned right to the end of the credits for news of the first ever In Depth podcast competition! This season the Pod Cast Boys are joining Pet Shop Boys in supporting War Child - donate via our Just Giving page and get your name in the credits of a future episode…

People in this episode

Hosts: Graham, Chris

Topics covered

• Pet Shop Boys
• Please album
• music history
• origin stories
• 40th anniversary

Keywords

• Pet Shop Boys
• Please
• music
• album history
• Graham
• Chris
• War Child
• origin stories

Sponsors

War Child

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Pet Shop Boys

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• 12RX035 Please (pt2) · March 20, 2026 · 1h 12m
• 12RX033 Electric · December 12, 2025 · 1h 27m
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