Every UK Number 1 single by Scottish acts
Calvin Harris has just scored a massive new Number 1 with Miracle, his trance anthem with Ellie Goulding.
Miracle is the 48th song by an act hailing from Scotland to reach the ultimate peak of the Official Singles Chart, and marks the Dumfries-born super-producer's 11th Number 1 overall.
Last year saw something of a haul of Scottish artists reaching Number 1, with both Lewis Capaldi and DJ duo LF SYSTEM enjoying Number 1 success with Forget You and Afraid To Feel, respectively (Lewis also gained a fourth char-topper this year with Pointless).
Overall, 30 Scottish solo artists/groups have scored a chart-topping single in the UK.
We've researched through 70 years of history in our chart archive, and here are a selection of the most notable. Scroll to the very bottom of the article for the full list.
Calvin Harris
Calvin Harris is by far the most successful Scot in the history of the Official Chart when it comes to Number 1s. 10+ years worth of Number 1 hits is not something everyone can achieve, and its made even more impressive when you see Calvin scored the most UK Number 1s of the 2010s, with eight.
Calvin's Number 1s are: Dance Wiv Me (with Dizzee Rascal & Chrome); I'm Not Alone; We Found Love (with Rihanna); Sweet Nothing (with Florence Welch); Under Control (with Alesso & Hurts); Summer; Blame (ft. John Newman); Feels (ft. Pharrell, Katy Perry & Big Sean); One Kiss (with Dua Lipa); Promises (with Sam Smith) and Miracle (with Ellie Goulding).
It brings his total up to 11 - one of the biggest collections of Number 1 singles ever.
View Calvin's complete UK chart history.
MORE: Calvin Harris' Official Top 20 biggest UK singles revealed
Lewis Capaldi
Scotland's resident cheeky chappy, Lewis had a glorious run of chart-toppers with his breakthrough debut album, Divinely Uninspired To A Hellish Extent, collecting two Number 1s during that cycle; Somebody You Loved (the most-streamed track ever in Official Charts history) and Before You Go.
His sophomore album, Broken By Desire To Be Heavenly Sent, is also set to be just as massive - the LP's first two singles, Forget Me and Pointless, also reached Number 1, bringing Lewis' tally up to four.
Wet Wet Wet
Marti Pellow's successful group are the next most prolific when it comes to Number 1 singles, with three to their name. Wet Wet Wet's Billy Bragg collab With a Little Help from My Friends was their first Number 1 in 1988, and the followed that up four years later with Goodnight Girl.
Then in 1994, the third time really was the charm. Love Is All Around from the Four Weddings and a Funeral movie soundtrack spent 15 weeks at Number 1, the joint second-longest consecutive reign at the top EVER.
#ChartFact: All three of WWW's Number 1s kept a Kylie Minogue song off the top spot.
Midge Ure
While Midge Ure never scored a chart-topper with his most famous group Ultravox, his first band Slik did hit the top spot in 1976 with Forever and Ever. Nine years later, Midge returned to the top as a soloist with If I Was.
TV talent show contestants
It turns out that Scottish people are really good at TV talent shows. Pop Idol semi-finalist Darius was the first competition star to hit Number 1, with Colourblind in 2002. Shortly after, Fame Academy winner David Sneddon hit the big time with Stop Living The Lie in 2003.
Fast forward another year and Michelle McManus' Pop Idol winning single All This Time spent three weeks at Number 1. Finally in 2007, Leon Jackson won The X Factor and scored the Official Christmas Number 1 with When You Believe.
Emeli Sandé
Other than Calvin Harris, Emeli Sandé was the only other Scot to score multiple UK Number 1s in the 2010s. Emeli has climbed to the top spot twice, ironically knocking Calvin Harris from the top on both occasions. She has guested on Professor Green's Read All About It, and Labrinth's Beneath Your Beautiful.
The complete list of Official UK Number 1 singles by Scottish acts with credited appearances only (bolded acts in collaborations are the Scottish musicians):
| YEAR | TITLE | ARTIST |
| 1969 | OB-LA-DI OB-LA-DA | MARMALADE |
| 1971 | CHIRPY CHIRPY CHEEP CHEEP | MIDDLE OF THE ROAD |
| 1972 | AMAZING GRACE | THE PIPES & DRUMS & MILITARY BAND OF THE ROYAL SCOTS DRAGOON GUARDS |
| 1975 | JANUARY | PILOT |
| 1975 | BYE BYE BABY | BAY CITY ROLLERS |
| 1975 | GIVE A LITTLE LOVE | BAY CITY ROLLERS |
| 1975 | D.I.V.O.R.C.E | BILLY CONNOLLY |
| 1976 | FOREVER AND EVER | SLIK |
| 1979 | ONE DAY AT A TIME | LENA MARTELL |
| 1980 | FEELS LIKE I'M IN LOVE | KELLY MARIE |
| 1981 | JAPANESE BOY | ANEKA |
| 1984 | I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN BETTER | JIM DIAMOND |
| 1985 | I KNOW HIM SO WELL | ELAINE PAIGE AND BARBARA DICKSON |
| 1985 | IF I WAS | MIDGE URE |
| 1988 | WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM MY FRIENDS/SHE'S LEAVING HOME | WET WET WET/BILLY BRAGG WITH CARA TIVEY |
| 1989 | BELFAST CHILD | SIMPLE MINDS |
| 1992 | GOODNIGHT GIRL | WET WET WET |
| 1992 | EBENEEZER GOODE | THE SHAMEN |
| 1993 | YOUNG AT HEART | THE BLUEBELLS |
| 1993 | RELIGHT MY FIRE | TAKE THAT FT. LULU |
| 1994 | INSIDE | STILTSKIN |
| 1994 | LOVE IS ALL AROUND | WET WET WET |
| 1996 | KNOCKIN' ON HEAVEN'S DOOR | DUNBLANE |
| 2002 | COLOURBLIND | DARIUS |
| 2003 | STOP LIVING THE LIE | DAVID SNEDDON |
| 2004 | ALL THIS TIME | MICHELLE |
| 2006 | I WISH I WAS A PUNK ROCKER (WITH FLOWERS IN MY HAIR) | SANDI THOM |
| 2007 | (I'M GONNA BE) 500 MILES | THE PROCLAIMERS/B POTTER/A PIPKIN |
| 2007 | WHEN YOU BELIEVE | LEON JACKSON |
| 2008 | DANCE WIV ME | DIZZEE RASCAL/CALVIN HARRIS/CHROME |
| 2009 | I'M NOT ALONE | CALVIN HARRIS |
| 2011 | WE FOUND LOVE | RIHANNA FT. CALVIN HARRIS |
| 2011 | READ ALL ABOUT IT | PROFESSOR GREEN FT. EMELI SANDE |
| 2012 | SWEET NOTHING | CALVIN HARRIS/FLORENCE WELCH |
| 2012 | BENEATH YOUR BEAUTIFUL | LABRINTH FT. EMELI SANDE |
| 2013 | UNDER CONTROL | CALVIN HARRIS/ALESSO/HURTS |
| 2014 | SUMMER | CALVIN HARRIS |
| 2014 | BLAME | CALVIN HARRIS FT. JOHN NEWMAN |
| 2017 | FEELS | CALVIN HARRIS FT. PHARRELL WILLIAMS, KATY PERTY AND BIG SEAN |
| 2018 | ONE KISS | CALVIN HARRIS & DUA LIPA |
| 2018 | PROMISES | CALVIN HARRIS & SAM SMITH |
| 2019 | SOMEONE YOU LOVED | LEWIS CAPALDI |
| 2020 | BEFORE YOU GO | LEWIS CAPALDI |
| 2021 | WELLERMAN | NATHAN EVANS/220 KID/BILLEN TED |
| 2022 | AFRAID TO FEEL | LF SYSTEM |
| 2022 | FORGET ME | LEWIS CAPALDI |
| 2023 | POINTLESS | LEWIS CAPALDI |
| 2023 | MIRACLE | CALVIN HARRIS & ELLIE GOULDING |
©2023 Official Charts Company. All rights reserved.
Like this list? Take a look at: Every Australian Number 1 ever, Every Welsh act to score a UK chart topper, ALL the Canadians to hit the Official Singles Chart top spot
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TR
Thomas Richardson
You forgot about Wish you the Best by Lewis Capaldi
dell9300
Annie Lennox also hit number 1, as one half of Eurythmics with “There Must Be an Angel (Playing with My Heart)”.
Smith Smyth
Yeah but she's a libtard freakshow now so nobody really cares about her.
col0362
Emeli Sande isn't Scottish. She was born and raised in Sunderland until she was 4. So she's as English as Rod Stewart. Talk about getting the basics wrong.
Jonathan Snelling
It’s certainly completely random to count her as Scottish but not Rod Stewart. Rod has always identified as Scottish by heritage so should clearly be included and to exclude him on the grounds he wasn’t born there is, well , racist to put it frankly as only racists define nationality in such strict terms. To then include Emeli just makes the whole thing ridiculous.
JL
Jerry Lang
In your Scottish Artists who've had No.1 Singles, you seem to have left out Lonnie Donegan, who had 3....he was born in Glasgow
Cheers
Jerry
Tore Søyland
What about Sweet and Blockbuster in Jan/Feb 1973? Singer Brian Connolly was Scottish, born in Glasgow
A
Andrew077
Calvin Harris may have had more weeks on the chart than any other Scottish artist, but needless to say the majority of those weeks are accumulated out of collaborations with international artists, he's done too many of them rather than have hits on his own, which in my opinion makes him less of a Scottish artist.
A
Andrew077
You forgot the "King Of Skiffle" himself, Lonnie Donegan, from Glasgow. He was the FIRST Scot to score 3 UK No.1's. "Cumberland Gap" and "Gamblin Man/Puttin' On The Style" both in 1957 and "My Old Man's A Dustman" in 1960.
Official Charts
Hi Andrew! This list features people who are identified as Scottish. Lonnie was born in Scotland but was raised in England since the age of 1 and lived his life in England. On the other hand, Emeli Sande makes the list because whilst she was born in Sunderland, she was raised in Scotland and identifies as Scottish.
Jonathan Snelling
Sorry but Lonnie always identified as Scottish as of course did Rod Stewart. Did anyone in his time identify more as Scottish? Judging someone’s nationality purely by where they were born is ridiculous and wrong. Is Cliff Richard Indian? Is Boris Johnson American or Mo Farah Somalian? Of course if you are a racist, you would have your own answer. You randomly pick some born there, some not and have no way of justifying any of it.
Added to missing the first Scottish number one in Hoots Mon for no good reason at all, it’s just a big fail I’m afraid.
gtbjames
you forgot rod stewart - 6 number 1's
Velvet Android
He was born and raised in England, that's the problem. You only have to listen to his speaking voice to know Sir Rod's technically a Londoner. But at the same time, he's one of the most famously and proudly 'Scottish' people around, so it is a bit of a conundrum...
I was more bothered by this article describing Wet Wet Wet's version of With A Little Help From My Friends as a Billy Bragg "collab". It was a double A-sided charity single (of Beatles songs, for ChildLine) that happened to have Billy's version of She's Leaving Home on the other side – the two acts didn't collaborate in any meaningful sense.
Jonathan Snelling
It’s really not a conundrum. He has never identified as anything other than Scottish. It’s his heritage and he clearly would have played for Scotland if he had succeeded as a footballer instead - which was probably always his preference. Yet other spurious entries are there that have far less connection to Scotland. It’s just a rubbish article really.