Still Pushing Pineapples

Trailer for a new documentary about the life of Black Lace's Dene Michael

Here’s a trailer for the forthcoming documentary Still Pushing Pineapples, which follows former pop star Dene Michael as he clings to the remnants of fame he once had as a member of 1980s novelty pop group Black Lace.

The band’s hit Agadoo – both beloved and hated by many – is what Dene’s best known for. Now, performing for a dwindling, ageing audience in some of the UK’s most deprived seaside towns and cities, he’s eager to press on with his music career and get out from under the legacy of Black Lace.

The film follows Dene, his 89-year-old mum Anne, and his girlfriend Hayley across Britain and the Costa del Sol in an ‘unmistakably British’ road movie.

The film is made by Kim Hopkins, who previously directed A Bunch of Amateurs, the 2022 documentary about Bradford Movie Makers, one of the oldest amateur filmmaking clubs in the world/

She said Still Pushing Pineapples was ‘about working-class communities, self-expression, the power of solidarity and escapism’, adding: ‘When Black Lace exploded onto Top of the Pops with the Agadoo hit in the 1980’s I, like many, dismissed it as a junk novelty song. But every summer since, on every beach holiday, Agadoo has proved inescapable….

‘Returning to my Yorkshire roots later in life, I’ve come to understand the power of escapist popular culture. Working-class people need to escape.

‘I decided to ask my family what they thought about me making a film about Black Lace and Agadoo? They approved of the idea. Nostalgia gleamed in their eyes. Alexa lit up with party tunes of yesteryear. They wanted to know the whole Black Lace story. Who were they, where did they end up?’

Still Pushing Pineapples, will be released in UK cinemas from November 29

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