The song was written in response to Steve Wright (Radio 1 DJ) playing Wham I'm your Man after the lunchtime "Newsbeat" which went out at 1230-1250 on Radio One. I recollect it was a Monday around April 1986. Apparently both Marr and Morrissey were appalled to hear Steve Wright report the Chernobyl disaster on the radio and then follow it by playing the Wham song and in an interview with NME in 1987, Marr says:
"'Panic' came about at the time of Chernobyl. Morrissey and myself were listening to a Newsbeat radio report about it. The story about this shocking disaster comes to an end and then, immediately, we're off into Wham!'s 'I'm Your Man'. I remember actually saying 'what the fuck has this got to do with peoples' lives?' We hear about Chernobyl, then, seconds later, we're expected to be jumping around to 'I'm Your Man'."
The song was written in response to Steve Wright (Radio 1 DJ) playing Wham I'm your Man after the lunchtime "Newsbeat" which went out at 1230-1250 on Radio One. I recollect it was a Monday around April 1986. Apparently both Marr and Morrissey were appalled to hear Steve Wright report the Chernobyl disaster on the radio and then follow it by playing the Wham song and in an interview with NME in 1987, Marr says:
"'Panic' came about at the time of Chernobyl. Morrissey and myself were listening to a Newsbeat radio report about it. The story about this shocking disaster comes to an end and then, immediately, we're off into Wham!'s 'I'm Your Man'. I remember actually saying 'what the fuck has this got to do with peoples' lives?' We hear about Chernobyl, then, seconds later, we're expected to be jumping around to 'I'm Your Man'."