Godley & Creme - Wide Boy

What this video is

Released in March 1980, 'Wide Boy' arrived at a critical inflection point when the British music industry was transitioning from pure audio promotion to visual storytelling via the promo clip — a format that would be institutionalised by MTV's 1981 launch. Godley & Creme, freshly emerged from the art-school experimentation of 10cc, were among the handful of UK acts treating the music video as a distinct creative…

Why it matters

As an Art Rock / New Wave artefact from 1980, 'Wide Boy' sits at the genre crossroads that defined the post-punk British art-pop scene. Godley & Creme's self-direction of the video was foundational to the emerging auteur model in music video production — a model they would refine into a career…

The director

Kevin Godley (b. 1945, Prestwich) and Lol Creme (b. 1947, Manchester) formed as a duo after departing 10cc in 1976. They directed their first music video in 1979 for 'An Englishman in New York' and went on to become among the most influential video directors…