1997: When Torn, Barbie Girl and Men in Black ruled the airwaves

It was also a massive year for the Spice Girls. Girl Power had become a global phenomenon, and they closed 1997 in Britain with the Christmas Number One, Too Much. Meanwhile, Will Smith managed the rare trick of dominating both cinema and radio: Men in Black was one of America’s biggest films of the year, while its title track spent four weeks at the top of the UK singles chart.

Then came a song inseparable from one of the year’s saddest moments. Following the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, Elton John reworked Candle in the Wind and performed it at her funeral. The subsequent single became a phenomenon, selling more than four million copies in Britain within weeks and becoming the UK’s biggest-selling single of all time.

South Africa was living through history of its own. The country’s new Constitution came into effect on 4 February 1997, Robben Island Museum opened at the beginning of the year, and the shortened combined version of Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika and Die Stem/The Call of South Africa became the national anthem. Against that backdrop, local music carried a powerful sense of optimism.

Vicky Sampson’s African Dream, featured in this week’s countdown, had become deeply associated with the new South Africa after its prominent role around Bafana Bafana’s triumphant 1996 Africa Cup of Nations campaign.

At the movies, Men in Black, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, Liar Liar, Air Force One and My Best Friend’s Wedding filled cinemas, before Titanic arrived in December and began its extraordinary run. And if you were young in 1997, there was a good chance you were also desperately trying to keep a tiny pixelated Tamagotchi alive.

Did You Know?

Harry Potter began with just 500 copies. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone was first published by Bloomsbury on 26 June 1997, with an initial hardback print run of only 500 copies. From that remarkably modest beginning came one of the biggest publishing and entertainment franchises in history.

There was another musical surprise hiding in plain sight too: Natalie Imbruglia’s Torn wasn’t originally hers. It had previously been recorded by Ednaswap, whose members Scott Cutler and Anne Preven co-wrote it. Imbruglia’s 1997 version transformed the song into an international pop classic.

From Don’t Speak and Return of the Mack to Free, Honey and Too Much, 1997 gave us songs that can still fill a dance floor or trigger a memory within seconds. This Sunday, Steve Bishop turns the clock back almost three decades to the year when Girl Power was everywhere, virtual pets needed feeding and one unknown boy wizard was just beginning his journey.