Did you know that…
• 35 per cent of all Christmas No. 1s have been cover songs?
• Only four acts have ever had multiple Christmas No. 1s: The Beatles, Queen, Cliff Richard and Spice Girls?
• “Last Christmas” by Wham! is the best-selling UK single never to reach number one?
• “Fairytale of New York” has reached the top 20 on 15 separate occasions since losing out to “Always On My Mind” by the Pet Shop Boys in 1987?
• 33 per cent of Christmas No. 1s are about love, compared to 18 per cent about Christmas?
There’s more to Christmas music than jingle bells and reindeer.
Just 12 out of 66 number ones are actually about Christmas.
The most successful of these was Do They Know It’s Christmas? by Band Aid in 1984, which has gone on to sell over three million copies – more than any other Christmas single.
Bob Geldof and co. beat Last Christmas by Wham! to top spot, though the latter has gone on to become the best-selling UK single never to reach number one.
The most recent Christmas-themed No. 1 was Band Aid 20’s effort at Do They Know It’s Christmas? in 2004.
Prior to that, you have to go all the way back to 1990 for a festive-themed chart-topper, courtesy of Cliff Richard’s Saviour’s Day.
Love is the most popular subject, with 22 of the 66 number ones dedicated to matters of the heart.
Heartbreak is next with six. Included in this category is 1994’s Christmas No. 1, Stay Another Day by East 17, beating off competition from Mariah Carey’s All I Want For Christmas Is You, which was named holiday song of the decade in 2010 in the UK, despite never reaching top spot.
Personal struggle, hope and novelty are all tied as the next most-popular subject with four No. 1s apiece.
Multiple winners
There have only been four acts to have had more than one Christmas number one: the Beatles, Cliff Richard, Queen and the Spice Girls.
The Beatles were the first group to top the festive charts three years in a row between 1963 and 1965, with I Want To Hold Your Hand, I Feel Fine and Day Tripper.
Just two years later Hello, Goodbye became their fourth Christmas number one – a total that is yet to be beaten.
The Spice Girls are the only others to have had three consecutive Christmas number ones, topping the charts between 1996 and 1998 with 2 Become 1, Too Much and Goodbye.
Cliff Richard’s first came in in 1960 alongside backing band The Shadows with I Love You, although he later returned on his own in 1988 and 1990 with Mistletoe and Wine and Saviour’s Day respectively.
Queen are the only band to have had the same song reach Christmas No. 1 twice, with Bohemian Rhapsody earning top spot in both 1975 and 1991.
Source: Blog.betway.com
