On April 22, the Pet Shop Boys musical Closer to Heaven is performed in London for the first time in fourteen years, in a sold-out month-long run at The Union Theatre. (It will return for a further five weeks beginning on October 21.). For this revival, at the Pet Shop Boys’ request, the musical’s original final number, “Positive role model”, is replaced by “Vocal”.
On August 15, the final date of the much-extended Electric tour – which began in March, 2013 – takes place at the Flow Festival in Helsinki. The tour has visited over forty countries.
On December 2, the Pet Shop Boys appear at MAMA – the Mnet Asian Music Awards – in Hong Kong. They are given the Worldwide Inspiration award and play a lengthy live medley, joined for their final two songs, “What have I done to deserve this?” and “Vocal”, by the K‑Pop artist f(x). At the organisers’ request, they wear the Electric tour straw jackets for, possibly, the final time.
‘Love Comes Quickly’ is released as a single.
The Boys continue work on ‘The Out Crowd’ (which is later transformed into ‘Hell’).
After working in the studio on ‘Breathing Space,’ they watch the Oscars on television. Later they go out to dinner and then to L.A.‘s famous Troubadour club for a performance by the band Archers of Loaf.
They perform at Barclaycard Arena in Birmingham, U.K.
It’s announced that the Pet Shop Boys and New Order have scheduled a co-headlining concert tour, dubbed ‘The Unity Tour,’ in the United States and Canada for late summer and early fall 2020. (Unfortunately, this tour will later be postponed on account of the COVID-19 pandemic.) On this same day, Tom Watkins, the Pet Shop Boys’ first manager, passes away of undisclosed causes following a long series of serious health issues, although his death won’t be announced to the general public for another two weeks.
In the wake of its recent use in an Allstate Insurance commercial during the Super Bowl broadcast, the roughly 35-year-old ‘Opportunities (Let’s Make Lots of Money)’ hits #1 on the Billboard Dance/Electronic Digital Song Sales chart, where it will remain for four weeks.