Sat Dec 21 13:50:00 UTC 2024: ## Wham!’s “Last Christmas” Scores Second Consecutive UK Christmas Number One

**London, UK** – Wham!’s iconic festive hit, “Last Christmas,” has achieved a remarkable feat, securing the top spot on the UK Christmas charts for the second year running. The song, performed by George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley, beat out stiff competition from artists including Mariah Carey, Gracie Abrams, Tom Grennan, and Ariana Grande.

Ridgeley expressed his delight, particularly for his late bandmate George Michael, who passed away in 2016. He stated that Michael would have been “utterly delighted” with the song’s enduring success, calling it “almost as much a part of Christmas as mince pies, turkey and pigs in blankets.” The Official Charts Company reported that the song amassed 12.6 million streams in the week leading up to Christmas.

“Last Christmas” joins an elite group of songs to have topped the Christmas chart more than once, alongside Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” and Band Aid’s “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” However, unlike these previous chart-toppers, Wham!’s hit achieved consecutive number one positions. Its original release in 1984 saw it lose to Band Aid’s charity single. This year, a 40th-anniversary remix of “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” ultimately reached only number 12 after controversy over its lyrics and unauthorized use of Ed Sheeran’s vocals.

The enduring popularity of “Last Christmas,” according to Radio 1’s Jack Saunders, highlights the challenge for new songs to compete with established Christmas classics. The top 40 chart featured 29 Christmas-themed songs, with only two newcomers among them. While Tom Grennan’s “It Can’t Be Christmas” secured fourth place following a significant promotional campaign, a protest song criticizing government cuts, “Freezing This Christmas,” only managed number 37.

In other chart news, Sabrina Carpenter topped the album chart with “Short ‘N’ Sweet,” while Michael Bublé’s Christmas album took second place.

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