List of Irish Singles Chart Christmas number ones explained

In Ireland, Christmas number ones are singles that are top of the Irish Singles Chart in the week in which Christmas Day falls.

The Irish Singles Chart was first published in 1962, and the first artist to top the chart at Christmas was Elvis Presley with "Return to Sender". The following year, Brendan Bowyer became the first Irish artist to claim top spot at Christmas with "No More". 2020 winner Dermot Kennedy ("Giants") is the first Irish national to achieve the feat since Mario Rosenstock in 2005.

The supergroup Band Aid, created by Irishman Bob Geldof, is the only act to have been number one at Christmas three times, each time with "Do They Know It's Christmas?". Four more acts have held top spot twice: The Beatles, Queen (both times with "Bohemian Rhapsody"), the Spice Girls and Eminem. Many acts that have topped the Irish Singles Chart at Christmas have also topped the UK Singles Chart at the same time.

From 2006 to 2013, every winner of the Irish Christmas number one came from the winning contestant of that year's series of the British reality contest The X Factor. Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars broke this streak in 2014 with their single "Uptown Funk".[1] [2] Irish bands such as The Rubberbandits ("Horse Outside" in 2010)[3] and The Saw Doctors ("Downtown" in 2011)[4] have contested for the honor during this time frame, but both fell well short.

List

YearArtistSong
1962Elvis Presley"Return to Sender"
1963Brendan Bowyer"No More"
1964The Beatles"I Feel Fine"
1965The Beatles"Day Tripper" / "We Can Work It Out"
1966Tom Jones"Green, Green Grass of Home"
1967Pat Lynch"Treat My Daughter Kindly"
1968The Scaffold"Lily The Pink"
1969The Archies"Sugar, Sugar"
1970Dave Edmunds"I Hear You Knocking"
1971Tommy Drennan"O Holy Night"
1972Thin Lizzy"Whiskey in the Jar"
1973Slade"Merry Christmas Everybody"
1974Gary Glitter"Oh Yes! You're Beautiful"
1975Queen"Bohemian Rhapsody"
1976Chicago"If You Leave Me Now"
1977Wings"Mull of Kintyre"
1978Boney M"Mary's Boy Child - Oh My Lord"
1979Pink Floyd"Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)"
1980St Winifred's School Choir"There's No-one Quite Like Grandma"
1981ABBA"One of Us"
1982Renee and Renato"Save Your Love"
1983Flying Pickets"Only You"
1984Band Aid"Do They Know It's Christmas?"
1985Dermot Morgan"Thank You Very Much Mr. Eastwood"
1986The Housemartins"Caravan of Love"
1987The Pogues ft. Kirsty MacColl"Fairytale of New York"
1988Cliff Richard"Mistletoe and Wine"
1989Band Aid"Do They Know It's Christmas?"
1990Zig and Zag"The Christmas No.1"
1991Queen"Bohemian Rhapsody" / "These Are the Days of Our Lives"
1992Whitney Houston"I Will Always Love You"
1993Take That"Babe"
1994East 17"Stay Another Day"
1995Boyzone"Father and Son"
1996Spice Girls"2 Become 1"
1997Various Artists"Perfect Day"
1998Spice Girls"Goodbye"
1999Westlife"I Have a Dream"
2000"Stan"
2001Kate Winslet"What If"
2002Eminem"Lose Yourself"
2003Will Young"Leave Right Now"
2004Band Aid 20"Do They Know It's Christmas?"
2005Mario Rosenstock"Gift Grub/Leave Right Now"
2006Leona Lewis"A Moment Like This"
2007Leon Jackson"When You Believe"
2008Alexandra Burke"Hallelujah"
2009Joe McElderry"The Climb"
2010Matt Cardle"When We Collide"
2011Little Mix"Cannonball"
2012James Arthur"Impossible"
2013Sam Bailey"Skyscraper"
2014Mark Ronson ft. Bruno Mars"Uptown Funk"
2015"Love Yourself"
2016Clean Bandit ft. Sean Paul and Anne-Marie"Rockabye"
2017Ed Sheeran"Perfect"
2018Ava Max"Sweet but Psycho"[5]
2019Lewis Capaldi"Before You Go"[6]
2020Dermot Kennedy"Giants"[7]
2021Ed Sheeran and Elton John"Merry Christmas"[8]
2022Raye ft. 070 Shake"Escapism"
2023"Stick Season"

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: People of Ireland, we haven't had a "Christmas" number one since 2004. Cannon. Eoghan. RTE.ie. 25 May 2019.
  2. Web site: Every Christmas Number 1 on the Official Irish Singles Char. White. Jack. Official Charts Company. 6 December 2018. 25 May 2019.
  3. Muldoon, Molly (2010-12-25). The Rubberbandits lose out on Christmas number one to X factor winner. Irish Central. Retrieved 2010-12-25.
  4. News: Sligo bay . Cannonball hits Saw Docs' No 1 hope – Music, Entertainment . Independent.ie . 21 December 2011. 2012-01-05.
  5. Web site: Ava Max dethrones Ariana Grande to claim Ireland's Christmas Number 1 single. Official Charts Company. White. Jack. 21 December 2018. 22 December 2018.
  6. Web site: Before You Go by Lewis Capaldi makes it four weeks at the top to claim Ireland's Xmas Number 1 single. Official Charts Company. White. Jack. 22 December 2019. 22 December 2019.
  7. https://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/dermot-kennedy-claims-ireland-s-christmas-number-1-single-and-album-with-giants-and-without-fear__31919/ Dermot Kennedy claims Ireland's Christmas number 1 single and album with Giants and Without Fear
  8. https://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/ed-sheeran-and-elton-john-s-merry-christmas-claims-ireland-s-2021-christmas-number-1__34824/ Ed Sheeran and Elton John claims Ireland's Christmas number 1 single

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