On August 19th, Neil and Chris meet by chance in an electronics shop on the Kings Road. Realizing they have a common interest in dance music, they begin to write together. Initially they call themselves West End; later they come up with the name Pet Shop Boys, a name derived from some friends who work in a pet shop in Ealing. "We thought it sounded like an English rap group".
On This Day
1986
'Suburbia' is released as a single.
1988
The Pet Shop Boys perform 'Domino Dancing' on Top of the Pops.
2008
Neil, who had never learned to drive and until now never had a driver's license, passes the test for his license on his first attempt. He celebrates by going out for an afternoon drive all by himself.
2009
The Boys perform the first of two consecutive nights' shows at San Francisco's Warfield Theater.
2011
They make a surprise appearance as after-dinner entertainers at an exclusive white-tie gala at The Stud House, Hampton Court, London—a fundraiser for the Raisa Gorbachev Foundation, a charity devoted to the battle against childhood cancer. Neil and Chris perform 'Go West' and 'West End Girls.'
2013
The Electric Tour comes to Philadelphia.
2015
It's the last full day of summer in the Northern Hemisphere. Chris and Neil are spending it in the midst of a Southern California heat wave; they're in Los Angeles recording tracks for their next album with producer Stuart Price.
- Facts collated by geowayne.com