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Every Christmas Number 2: The songs that just missed out on the Christmas Number 1
There can only be one Xmas chart topper a year – here's who was left out in the cold.
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We remember the big Christmas Number 1s, but what about songs that just missed out?
The ones that came oh-so close to being immortalised in the Christmas Number 1 hall of fame, the unlucky few that glory eluded in the biggest chart race of the year - we're talking the Christmas Number 2s.
We look at a selection of tracks that were knocked off the top or pipped at the post on that all-important Christmas chart week, before revealing the full list at the bottom of the page.
Joe McElderry – The Climb (2009)
Since Shayne Ward claimed it in the second series in 2005, scoring the Christmas Number 1 was pretty much a perk of winning The X Factor. 2009's winner Joe McElderry, however, felt the might of public opinion when a backlash against the talent show led to a Facebook campaign to install Rage Against the Machine's Killing In The Name as Christmas Number 1. And it worked! Joe had to settle for taking the top spot a week later with his Miley Cyrus-covering winner's single The Climb. See The Climb's week-by-week chart success journey.
MORE: Every Official Christmas Number 1 ever
Nizlopi – JCB Song (2005)
Speaking of Shayne Ward, his 2005 X Factory victory meant that bookies' favourite Nizlopi's JCB Song was denied the chance of being the first "novelty" Christmas Number 1 since 2000's Bob The Builder.
Mariah Carey – All I Want For Christmas Is You (1994, 2020)
We're still recovering, but back in 1994 a last-minute surge of affection for East 17's Stay Another Day, with huge sales for both, meant Mariah was left at Number 2, with only what was left of the advent calendar chocolate for company. History was repeated in 2020, when All I Want For Christmas Is You took second place to LadBaby's Don't Stop Me Eatin' on Christmas week.
Mariah got her moment in 2020 when All I Want For Christmas Is You finally landed at Number 1 on the UK Official Singles Chart some 26 years after its original release, albeit not Christmas week, but she did set a new chart record. Reaching the summit in its 70th week on chart, Official Charts confirmed that no other song in UK chart history had spent more weeks in the Official Chart Top 40 before eventually reaching Number 1.
To this day, however, the coveted Christmas Number 1 slot still eludes Mariah.
MORE: WHAM! crowned the UK's Christmas Number 1 2024
Kylie & Jason – Especially For You (1988)
The duet all soap and pop fans had been waiting for was the very essence of Christmas Number 1 – two huge stars rumoured to be real-life lovers, a slushy duet, and a schmaltzy video of the pair being reunited. However. Step forward Cliff Richard, who was brandishing some Mistletoe and proffering some festive Wine. Kylie and Jason had to settle for being the first Number 1 of 1989 instead.
Pogues feat. Kirsty MacColl – Fairytale Of New York (1987)
"I could've been someone." "Well so could anyone…" And the anyone in 1987 was not the Pogues classic with Kirsty MacColl but instead Pet Shop Boys with their "not very festive but still amazing hi-NRG banger" cover of Elvis's Always On My Mind.
One True Voice – Sacred Trust (2002)
Cliff Richard – Millennium Prayer (1999)
Cliff Richard is the King of Christmas, with three Christmas Number 1s of his own, plus his contribution to 1989's winner, Band Aid II. But Cliff is also king of Christmas Number 2, having landed there an incredible four times with Millennium Prayer (1999), Daddy's Home (1981), Wind Me Up (1965), and Bachelor Boy (1962).
Little Mix - Cannonball (2011)
Perhaps not wanting a repeat of the Joe McElderry and Rage Against The Machine chart battle (but more on that later), Little Mix's Cannonball was released a few weeks out from the festive chart. This meant their cover of Damian Rice's Cannonball hit Number 1 on 18 December, one week before the Christmas Number 1 slot. On the big day, they had to play second fiddle to Gareth Malone and the Military Wives Choir with Wherever You Are.
MORE: The acts with the most Number 2 hits on the UK's Official Singles Chart
Chef – Chocolate Salty Balls (1998)
1998 was a big battle between Queens of Christmas Number 1 Spice Girls and… a cartoon character with a taste for massively problematic innuendo. Chef's Chocolate Salty Balls were the perfect recipe for a novelty chart-topper, but the top spot was in search of a bit more Spice, and a post-Geri quartet took it with Goodbye. Sales were massive that week, with Spice Girls shifting 380,711 copies, and Chef – actually soul singer Isaac Hayes – just under 8,000 behind.
Mike Flowers' Pops – Wonderwall (1995)
Mike Flowers' Pops Wonderwall...a novelty cover that eventually melted the heart of its originators Oasis.
The fab and groovy and totally hip (yes, we are cringing typing those words, why do you ask?) Mike Flowers took a heartfelt ballad and turned it into a delightfully cheesy easy listening masterpiece. Sadly, ballads were what the great British public were after and Mike lost out to a Michael – Jackson, in fact, with his lowkey, understated classic Earth Song.
Take That – Babe (1993)
Take That seemed locked on to be the star atop the tree in 1993, but there was a shock awaiting them – and it was pink and shaped like a great big lump of… well, stuff. The charms of Mr Blobby outwitted the dimples of Mark Owen and snatched it from Take That at the last minute with his imaginatively titled Mr Blobby. Possibly one of the most controversial Christmas Number 1 upsets, it was the catalyst for more hotly contested battles, as artists sought to reclaim the idea that landing the festive chart topper was a serious accolade. Which it is!
Whitney – Saving All My Love For You (1985)
Whitney would, of course, secure the Christmas Number 1 in 1992 with I Will Always Love You, but she first came pretty close seven years earlier with her big debut single, Saving All My Love For You. After two weeks at the top, Whitney was deposed just as the turkey was cooking in the oven, by rocking and rolling Cliff-Elvis hybrid Shakin' Stevens, with his perennial fave Merry Christmas Everyone.
Wham! – Last Christmas (1984, 2022)
George's whispered "Merry Christmas" in the first verse is the stuff of legend, but Last Christmas is perhaps the most famous festive near-miss of them all. On original release in 1984, it entered at Number 2 and stayed there for five weeks, kept off the top by the original Band Aid’s Do They Know It’s Christmas.
It was reissued in 1985 for another go, making it to Number 6. Last Christmas has returned to the Top 40 14 every year since 2007, and finally claimed the Number 1 spot in the first week of 2021, the week after the Official Christmas Chart.
In 2022, George and Andrew once again became Official Christmas Number 2, taking second place to LadBaby's Food Aid, but 2023 saw the duo battle with Sam Ryder before WHAM's Last Christmas secured the Official Christmas Number 1 in 2023 for the first time ever. At 39 years in the making, Last Christmas set a new record for the longest ever journey to the UK's Christmas Number 1. In 2024, WHAM! made more history as Last Christmas became the first song in Official Chart history to claim the Christmas Number 1 in two consecutive years.
John Lennon – (Just Like) Starting Over (1980)
The former Beatle's death in December 1980 sent shockwaves through the entertainment world and led to an upsurge in demand for the star's old material, but it wasn't enough to give him a Christmas Number 1. He was toppled Christmas week by St Winifred's School Choir's tribute to their grandma, but he did have another record in the Top 5 – the altogether more Christmassy, albeit a bit depressing, Happy Xmas (War Is Over).
ABBA – I Have A Dream (1979)
Not all dreams can come true, however, and this celestial ballad was pipped by Pink Floyd's only slightly less festive Another Brick in the Wall. I Have A Dream would get a shot at being Christmas Number 1 20 years later, however, when Westlife covered it and took it all the way. Take a look at all ABBA's UK hit singles and albums.
Village People – YMCA (1978)
Dancefloors of Christmas discos up and down the country will have been bouncing to camp classic YMCA, but sadly there's only room in the history books for one festive Number 1. But camp did win through – the prize went to Boney M's Mary's Boy Child, not exactly the most shy and retiring of all the Christmas Number 1s, we have to say.
But for the Village People, as their anthem itself declared - there's no need to feel down, YMCA picked itself off the ground and climbed to Number 1 a week later instead.
Petula Clark – Downtown (1964)
"The lights are much brighter there…" Petula could've been talking about Christmas tree lights in Downtown, couldn't she? She wasn't, however, and her uplifting appreciation for going into town for a few drinks, and maybe to buy a couple of records, was stopped in its gallop by the Beatles, enjoying their second of three Christmas Number 1s with I Feel Fine.
Every Christmas Number 2 on the Official Chart
| YEAR | TITLE | ARTIST |
| 1952 | YOU BELONG TO ME | JO STAFFORD |
| 1953 | ANSWER ME | DAVID WHITFIELD |
| 1954 | SANTO NATALE | DAVID WHITFIELD |
| 1955 | ROCK AROUND THE CLOCK | BILL HALEY AND HIS COMETS |
| 1956 | SINGING THE BLUES | GUY MITCHELL |
| 1957 | MA HE'S MAKING EYES AT ME | JOHNNY OTIS AND HIS ORCHESTRA WITH MARIE ADAMS |
| 1958 | HOOT MON | LORD ROCKINGHAM'S XI |
| 1959 | WHAT DO YOU WANT | ADAM FAITH |
| 1960 | IT'S NOW OR NEVER | ELVIS PRESLEY |
| 1961 | TOWER OF STRENGTH | FRANKIE VAUGHN |
| 1962 | THE NEXT TIME/BACHELOR BOY | CLIFF RICHARD |
| 1963 | SHE LOVES YOU | THE BEATLES |
| 1964 | DOWNTOWN | PETULA CLARK |
| 1965 | WIND ME UP (LET ME GO) | CLIFF RICHARD |
| 1966 | SUNSHINE SUPERMAN | DONOVAN |
| 1967 | MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR (EP) | THE BEATLES |
| 1968 | BUILD ME UP BUTTERCUP | THE FOUNDATIONS |
| 1969 | RUBY, DON'T TAKE YOUR LOVE TO TOWN | KENNY ROGERS AND THE FIRST EDITION |
| 1970 | WHEN I'M DEAD AND GONE | MCGUINNESS FLINT |
| 1971 | JEEPSTER | T. REX |
| 1972 | MY DING-A-LING | CHUCK BERRY |
| 1973 | I LOVE YOU LOVE ME LOVE | GARY GLITTER |
| 1974 | YOU AIN'T SEEN NOTHING YET | BACHMAN-TURNER OVERDRIVE |
| 1975 | I BELIEVE IN FATHER CHRISTMAS | GREG LAKE |
| 1976 | UNDER THE MOON OF LOVE | SHOWADDYWADDY |
| 1977 | THE FLORAL DANCE | BRIGHOUSE AND RASTRICK BRASS BAND |
| 1978 | Y.M.C.A. | THE VILLAGE PEOPLE |
| 1979 | I HAVE A DREAM | ABBA |
| 1980 | (JUST LIKE) STARTING OVER | JOHN LENNON |
| 1981 | DADDY'S HOME | CLIFF RICHARD |
| 1982 | BLUE CHRISTMAS (EP) | SHAKIN' STEVENS |
| 1983 | MY OH MY | SLADE |
| 1984 | LAST CHRISTMAS/EVERYTHING SHE WANTS | WHAM |
| 1985 | SAVING ALL MY LOVE FOR YOU | WHITNEY HOUSTON |
| 1986 | CARAVAN OF LOVE | THE HOUSEMARTINS |
| 1987 | FAIRYTALE OF NEW YORK | THE POGUES & KIRSTY MACCOLL |
| 1988 | ESPECIALLY FOR YOU | KYLIE AND JASON |
| 1989 | LET'S PARTY | JIVE BUNNY AND THE MASTERMIXERS |
| 1990 | ICE ICE BABY | VANILLA ICE |
| 1991 | WHEN YOU TELL ME THAT YOU LOVE ME | DIANA ROSS |
| 1992 | HEAL THE WORLD | MICHAEL JACKSON |
| 1993 | BABE | TAKE THAT |
| 1994 | ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU | MARIAH CAREY |
| 1995 | WONDERWALL | THE MIKE FLOWER POPS |
| 1996 | KNOCKIN' ON HEAVEN'S DOOR | DUNBLANE |
| 1997 | TELETUBBIES SAY EH-OH! | TELETUBBIES |
| 1998 | CHOCOLATE SALTY BALLS (P.S. I LOVE YOU) | CHEF |
| 1999 | THE MILLENNUM PRAYER | CLIFF RICHARD |
| 2000 | WHAT MAKES A MAN | WESTLIFE |
| 2001 | HOW WONDERFUL YOU ARE | GORDON HASKELL |
| 2002 | SACRED TRUST | ONE TRUE VOICE |
| 2003 | CHRISTMAS TIME (DON'T LET THE BELLS END) | THE DARKNESS |
| 2004 | FATHER AND SON | RONAN KEATING FT. YUSUF ISLAM |
| 2005 | JCB SONG | NIZLOPI |
| 2006 | PATIENCE | TAKE THAT |
| 2007 | WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD | KATIE MELUA AND EVA CASSIDY |
| 2008 | HALLELUJAH | JEFF BUCKLEY |
| 2009 | THE CLIMB | JOE MCELDERRY |
| 2010 | WHAT'S MY NAME | RIHANNA FT. DRAKE |
| 2011 | CANNONBALL | LITTLE MIX |
| 2012 | IMPOSSIBLE | JAMES ARTHUR |
| 2013 | HAPPY | PHARRELL |
| 2014 | UPTOWN FUNK | MARK RONSON FT. BRUNO MARS |
| 2015 | LOVE YOURSELF | JUSTIN BIEBER |
| 2016 | HUMAN | RAG'N'BONE MAN |
| 2017 | RIVER | EMINEM FT. ED SHEERAN |
| 2018 | SWEET BUT PSYCHO | AVA MAX |
| 2019 | OWN IT | STORMZY FT ED SHEERAN & BURNA BOY |
| 2020 | ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU | MARIAH CAREY |
| 2021 | MERRY CHRISTMAS | ED SHEERAN & ELTON JOHN |
| 2022 | LAST CHRISTMAS | WHAM! |
| 2023 | YOU'RE CHRISTMAS TO ME | SAM RYDER |
| 2024 | THAT'S SO TRUE | GRACIE ABRAMS |
©2024 Official Charts Company. All rights reserved.
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Velvet Android
A great article, this. Think I've spotted a mistake right back near the start of the list, though, OCC – Christmas no.2 1956 was not Singing The Blues by Guy Mitchell. That climbed to no.2 the next week: Official Singles Chart 28 December 1956—3 January 1957.
Number 2 for the week 21 December 1956—27 December 1956 was The Green Door by Frankie Vaughan (the same song later taken to Number One in the early '80s by Shakin' Stevens, who himself ended up both a festive chart-topper and runner-up in different years), meaning Frankie was the Christmas runner-up in both 1956 and 1961.
And it's Vaughan, not "Vaughn" as the list entry for 1961 here misspells it.
On that note, the Lord Rockingham's XI classic (Christmas 1958) is Hoots Mon, not "Hoot Mon". And Cliff's The Millennium Prayer has also been misspelled on the list as "The Millennum Prayer". And it's Wham!, not "WHAM!" as used in the body of the article.
BleeUK
This list is so inaccurate, many did get #1 in fact doing the holiday season,and Christmas, From South Park to the Climb from Joe it got #1, so the UK charts and Media always have the sales and data before christmas day in fact, as the Christmas Charts never even includes Christmas Day or Christmas week at all, becuase it a week early this is the Run Up to Christmas list but not Christmas.
D
djcarbines
It's accurate inasmuch that they are records at #2 on Chrstmas Day. Almost all of them hit #1 in other weeks. I'd like to see an indication of those that PEAKED at #2 from this list. I can remember a lot, but not all. It's about 14 of them.
KF
Karl Frost
Who are The Batles?
JC
James Cook
4 near misses for Sir Cliff, interesting fact!
AN
Andy Norton
There needs to be a playlist of this. Very interesting assortment of tunes from over the decades.
Jackabout
Why no mention of the biggest selling number 2 of all time?