Official Charts Flashback 1992: Shakespears Sister - Stay

It's fair to say that when Siobhan Fahey left Bananarama, expectations of any solo project she might have planned were not high.

The singer parted ways with the group in 1988 after a row over pizza (!) and becoming frustrated with the musical direction they were headed, famously telling their chief producer Pete Waterman they wouldn't sing songs with the word 'love' in the title. When she did return just a year later, few expected it to be one of the boldest revolutions in pop.

Teaming up with US singer-songwriter Marcella Detroit (although originally conceived as a Siobhan solo project), the pair formed Shakespears Sister, a band whose dark-but-danceable goth-pop couldn't have been further from Bananarama's brand of bold and unpolished sass. 

The duo's big breakout hit arrived 30 years ago; this week in 1992 Stay was in the middle of an eight week stint at Number 1 on the Official Singles Chart, having climbed its way there in February by knocking Wet Wet Wet's Goodnight Girl off the summit after a five-week ascent. The eight week run marked a new record for a UK girl band, and, unsurprisingly, became the fourth biggest selling single that year.

Stay went on to become a hit across the globe, reaching Number 4 on American's Billboard Hot 100 and spending six weeks at the top in Siobhan's native Ireland. The accompanying music video, directed by Sophie Muller and inspired by 1950 sci-fi film Cat Women Of The Moon, won Best Video at the BRITs and was brilliantly spoofed by French & Saunders.

Shortly after Stay's success, Marcella left the group and Siobhan continued solo. Look back at Shakespears Sister's complete Official UK Chart history here.

Elsewhere in the Official Singles Chart Top 40 this week in 1992, Eric Clapton's Tears In Heaven climbed to its peak of Number 5, Ce Ce Peniston's Finally made its debut at Number 6, and Bruce Springsteen flew straight in at 11 with Human Touch.

View the full Top 100 Official Singles Chart from this week in 1992