Frankie Goes To Hollywood

It's thirty years ago this week that MTV banned Madonna's Justify My Love video. Back in 1990 it was deemed that chicly shot, arty portrayals of men and women enjoying a bit of casual BDSM in the luxury of a hotel room were all a bit too much for Joe Public to appreciate. Fast forward three decades and we're post Fifty Shades, still amidst a pandemic of none too subtle, highly suggestive twerking in almost every Hip-Hop video and nearly every new gritty drama worth it's weight seems to feel the need to throw in a vivid sex scene, full frontal nudity or even self-abuse. Obviously there is an issue of age ratings and watershed times to be considered when certain platforms make their decisions but we thought it high time we took a look back at five of our favourite, once banned videos. 

David Bowie

David Bowie - The Next Day.

Continue reading: Banned Music Videos: What's All The Fuss About?

Former Frankie Goes To Hollywood frontman and 80s icon Holly Johnson was already close to death when he was diagnosed with HIV. Johnson received the news in 1991, despite having "an inkling" the he might have the illness for two years, after falling ill. He explained that for the five years following his diagnosis, he felt "at death's door".

Related: Could Holly Johnson's The Justice Collective Have The Christmas Number One?

In an interview with British newspaper The Times, Johnson said: "At the end of 1989, I was already showing signs of ill health. I had to pull out of a major German TV show with some mysterious flu. Did I have an inkling? Oh God, yeah. But I thought that if I didn't talk about it, it would go away. I was nearly in the grave. Well, Holly Johnson was at death's door between 1991 and 1996."