Clean Bandit, Rag’n’Bone Man and Little Mix battle for 2016’s Official Christmas Number 1
The tables have turned on this year’s race for the Official Christmas Number 1, with three acts now battling it out for the festive top spot, OfficialCharts.com can reveal.
Reigning chart toppers Clean Bandit are currently leading the midweek charge with Rockabye, performing strongly across both sales and streams, but it’s not home and dry just yet - the trio will need to hold off competition through to Friday from rising star and BRITS Critics Choice winner Rag ‘n’ Bone Man who trails by less than 4,000 copies with his track Human.
If they do manage it, Clean Bandit will join several other acts to have already spent time at the top of the chart with their song ahead of clinching the Christmas Number 1 title, including the likes of Human League’s Don't You Want Me (1981), Whitney Houston's I Will Always Love You (1992), East 17's Stay Another Day (1994), and even Mr Blobby, who hit Number 1 in early December 1993, before being toppled by Take That’s Babe, only to then reclaim the top spot in time for Christmas.
MORE: Look back through every Official Christmas Number 1 ever
Meanwhile, Little Mix have appeared as a late challenger for the Christmas Number 1; their latest single Touch has zoomed 20 places since last week and currently sits at Number 3, while just 9,000 copies separate the entire Top 10 at this stage.
The news comes after there was an early sales boost over the weekend from Christmas Number 1 contenders Inspiral Carpets’ Saturn 5 (at Number 20 today) and The London Hospices Choir’s The Living Years (33).
New entries and high climbers
With just six more shopping days until Christmas, seven festive songs are on course to finish inside this week’s Top 40: Mariah Carey’s All I Want For Christmas Is You (7), The Pogues ft. Kirst Maccoll’s Fairytale Of New York (15), Wham’s Last Christmas (16), Shakin’ Stevens’ Merry Christmas Everyone (25), Wizzard’s I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday (28), Chris Rae’s Driving Home for Christmas (35), and Band Aid’s Do They Know It’s Christmas (39).
MORE: These are officially the UK's biggest seller Christmas songs ever
MORE: Read all the latest on this year's Official Christmas Number 1 race
Further down, three more contenders for this year’s Official Christmas Number 1 are inside the Top 100: You Can’t Always Get What You Want by Friends Of Jo Cox (59), released in memory of the late politician who was tragically murdered earlier this year in Birstall, West Yorkshire, Everley Pregnant Brothers’ rework of Kings of Leon’s Sex On Fire, called Chip Pan (73), and Our Superhero (A Christmas Wish) by Liv ‘N’ G (100), a track released to raise funds for the much-needed cancer treatment of 5 year-old Bradley Lowery.
Check out this week's Top 100 Official Singles Chart Update
Look back through every Official Christmas Number 1 ever below:
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JW
James Worthington
The lad for Macmillan cancer Shinny James Davenport hasn't even got a mention. I actually thought that would be a cracking Christmas song..
Doc Pops
Christmas #1 ? Dave Clark Five ! Thanks to all those thousands of Rangers & Crystal palace supporters... and those who remember the 1964 UK #1 first time around. Who'd have thought it ?!
Z
Zacky
Rockabye is a good song, but if it takes no.1 for Christmas, we could say goodbye to Christmas single chart. The winner of Christmas single chart should be Christmas-themed or charity songs or X factor singles.
Christmas album chart has been dead for a few years.
I Am A Stegosaurus
NO Rockabye being Christmas number 1 would be bulls#*t. It would be nothing special AT ALL, can't believe it's came this far, can't believe it even hit number 1 in the first place. Matt Terry, Little Mix (as Touch is actually fairly good for a Little Mix song) and Rag 'n' Bone Man deserve it more but good luck with that last one as we've not had a rock chart topper since mid 2012.
Alfred Lock
And it looks like Little Mix have passed that crucial first 5 years for a pop act if they are to continue as many others haven't .
Alfred Lock
X FACTOR WILL NOT DO IT NOW(i TOLD YOU SO) BUT BETWEEN THE TOP 3 AS IT LOOKS NOW NONE OF THEM ARE FOR CHARITY SO TO ALL YOU YOUNG GENERATION ..... THE CHRISTMAS CHART IS NOW OFFICIALLY DEAD AND YOU ARE ALL AN UNCARING YOUNG NATION(OLDER OLD SCHOOL MUSIC BUYERS ASIDE LIKE ME) WHO NOW LONGER HAVE THE SPIRIT FOR GIVING TO THE UNFORTUNATE AT THIS TIME OF THE YEAR ! FOR ME THAT WAS THE OLD SPIRIT OF XMAS BUT NOW YOU SADLY LINE THE POCKETS OF ITUNES, SPOTIFY AND DEEZER THAN GIVE TO A GOOD CAUSE. THAT'S THAT OFF MY CHEST BUT AT LEAST TRUE LEGENDS AND ACTS RULE STRONGLY STILL IN ALBUMS . DON'T CARE WHAT YOU THINK. HAPPY NEW 2017 BY THE WAY. :-)
Z
Zacky
But Little Mix was from X Factor. "Human" got fame because a contestant of X Factor covered this song. X Factor effect is still here.
Only if "Rockabye" sustains its no.1 spot, not only X Factor but also any Christmas-themed songs could no longer take effect.
I Am A Stegosaurus
Nah, we don't need another crappy choir at number 1. Just because it's for charity doesn't mean we have to like it.
A
ANTHONY
Xfactor rubbish its about time this manufactured garbage stopped taking xmas num 1. This will be 2nd year in a row if it doesnt hit num one. As for the rest of the charts. Are they really relevant anymore i dont think so. The charts are pretty much r&b/rap clones. A few good exceptions but very few and far between. The top 40 nowadays means very little as far as units sold are concerned
Alfred Lock
But who's going to have the indignity of being knocked off just before years end by HONEY G??!! Then again maybe not to save some sanity we have left.
Alfred Lock
A choir is only crappy if they don't all sing in tune. I'm sure Gareth Malone would think very differently on that. Remember WHEREVER YOU ARE 5 years ago destroyed Little Mix's X Factor winning CANNONBALL on sales and it was for a worthy cause. Our brave boys and girls in the army during Iraq(THE BEST ARMY IN THE WORLD).
I Am A Stegosaurus
Well true coz LM are awful
Caffeineinmybrain
It's partly the younger generation being less inclined to donate to charity but not all about that.Firstly there are alot of charity singles out this year-ive never seen so many-so the sales are spread thinner on the ground hence one can't make a big impact on the chart.Also nearly all of them are and are mainly depending on their charity status to sell and blatantly so in some cases,they know they don't have a good tune to back it up.So actually I respect people for choosing the good tunes in the chart who actually deserve their success.
R
riley
Looks like were in for one of a battle for the christmas number 1 !