I had to walk away from America, and say goodbye to the biggest part of my career, because I knew otherwise my demons would get the better of me.

1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US and maintained that position for four consecutive weeks. In 2003 he paired up with Ronan Keating on the Who Wants to be a Millionaire? and won £32000 after having their original £64000 winnings halved after missing the £125000 question. On 12 August London's Metropolitan Police said he was "charged with possession of cannabis and with driving while unfit through drink or drugs".

In 2004 the Radio Academy named Michael as the most played artist on British radio between the period of 1984–2004. The documentary A Different Story was released in 2005; it covered his personal life and professional career. His first solo single "Careless Whisper" was released when he was still in the duo and sold about six million copies worldwide.