When families across the United Kingdom sit down to their Christmas feasts tomorrow, more than likely they will do so accompanied by traditional festive anthems by artists such as Slade, Wizzard, the Pogues, Darkness, Mud, Boney M, Paul McCartney and Chris Rea, but the song that’s at the top of the charts for the season of goodwill this year is already a huge favourite, although it’s taken 39 years to get to the top of the hit parade.

The 2023 No 1 is many people’s best-loved Christmas anthem of all time and was penned and produced in 1984 by the late George Michael, accompanied by his Wham! partner Andrew Ridgeley, with the express aim of landing the top spot that year… unfortunately the mission was not accomplished, it was beaten to the summit by the second best-selling UK single of all time.

The Wham! classic Last Christmas reached second spot that year but was kept off the top by perhaps the most famous of all festive anthems… Do They Know It’s Christmas? FULL STORY