Duran Duran was one of the most successful bands of the 1980s. The English synthpop group may not be as relevant as they once were, but they are still making music and going on tour. Despite the fact that most of their career has been made public, there are still some things that many people do not know about them. With that in mind, here PPcorn present a list of 15 facts you probably didn’t know about Duran Duran.
Number Fifteen: Duran Duran Have a Shelved Album You’ve Never Heard
Before guitarist Andy Taylor left Duran Duran in 2006, the group recorded an album called Reportage. Many of the songs were angry and political (more than usual), and it was not well-received by Sony, so it was shelved.
Number Fourteen: MTV Censored Them
Though Duran Duran were almost synonymous with MTV for some time, MTV ended up censoring them for their video of “Electric Barbarella.” The video is extremely racy and shows a sexy female robot.
Number Thirteen: There Is a Song About Simon Le Bon’s Trip to the Dentist
Simon Le Bon took a trip to the dentist where he was administered the drug Midazolam. After he returned from the dentist, he was still in a strange state, and one of the other members reportedly said, “You’re still in Medazzaland, buddy.” This inspired the song that features spoken word by Nick Rhodes on the album Medazzaland.
Number Twelve: Duran Duran Had Their Own Board Game
In the 1980s, Milton Bradley released Arena, which was called so because of Duran Duran’s live album. The objective of the game was to collect cards and accumulate points, and the game can still be found on eBay.
Number Eleven: Only One Member Has His Own Documentary
And that member is Roger Taylor. The documentary is called Searching for Roger Taylor, and it was released in 2000.
Number Ten: Nick Rhodes Was a Substitute Teacher
When Rhodes was in school, his chemistry teacher would often leave to go bet on horses. His teacher left Rhodes in charge when he was gone.
Number Nine: Simon Le Bon Started His Career on Screen
Before he was a famous musician, Le Bon could be seen in Persil soap commercials! He was also involved in theater.
Number Eight: John Taylor Is Very, Very Prolific
Did you know that Duran Duran member John Taylor has been involved in nine studio albums that have nothing to do with Duran Duran? Taylor was part of the group The Power Station, and he has also released several solo albums.
Number Seven: TV Mania Took 16 Years to Be Released
Nick Rhodes and Warren Cuccurullo worked on a project called TV Mania that was a sort of predecessor to reality television. However, the project did not actually get released until 2013.
Number Six: Simon Le Bon Almost Drowned Twice
Le Bon loves to sail, but he has gotten himself in trouble in the water a few times before. His yacht capsized in 1985, but he was able to survive. The year before that, Le Bon was attached to a rotating windmill that stopped working when he was underwater, and he had to be saved by divers.
Number Five: They Got Their Name From a Movie Character
There is a character in the 1968 Jane Fonda sci-fi flick Barbarella named Dr. Durand Durand. This is where the group got their name.
Number Four: None of the Taylors Are Related
This one is almost unbelievable, but it’s true! Andy John Taylor, Andy Taylor, and Roger Taylor are completely unrelated.
Number Three: The “Girls on Film” Controversy
Because of the sexual undertones and nudity in the music video, “Girls on Film” was banned from the BBC. And very heavily edited on MTV.
Number Two: Andy Taylor Got Hurt Filming a Music Video
While filming the music video for “Save a Prayer,” Andy Taylor fell out of a tree when he was playing air guitar. He ended up falling face first into a lagoon, and he was hospitalized for an entire week thanks to a tropical virus.
Number One: They Partied With Their Enemies
Duran Duran’s notorious rival was Spandau Ballet, and while they were in Germany together for Bob Geldof’s Band Aid collaboration, they partied together! They recorded “Do They Know It’s Christmas” the next day.