LadBaby Rings up Chart Record With U.K. Christmas No. 1

LadBaby lands the ultimate Christmas present with “Food Aid” (via BMG) earning the coveted Christmas No. 1 in the U.K. — and doing so in record-busting fashion.

The charity single debuts at No. 1 on the Official Singles Chart with more than 65,000 chart sales, the Official Charts Company reports, for the fastest-selling week of any recording in 2022.

The husband-and-wife duo of Mark and Roxanne Hoyle become the first act to nab five Official U.K. Christmas No. 1 singles, beating the old mark held by the Beatles, who bagged four non-consecutive Christmas leaders in 1963, 1964, 1965 & 1967.

Previously, LadBaby ruled the Christmas chart with “We Built This City” (in 2018), “I Love Sausage Rolls” (2019), “Don’t Stop Me Eatin’” (2020) and 2021’s “Sausage Rolls For Everyone” with Ed Sheeran and Elton John.

Proceeds from the single, a re-interpretation of Band Aid’s ‘80s classic “Do They Know It’s Christmas?,” are split equally between food bank charity The Trussell Trust and the Band Aid Trust.

“It only seems yesterday that LadBaby turned up with their first festive campaign four years ago, so it feels slightly surreal to be sending hearty congratulations on their fifth successive Official Christmas No. 1,” comments Martin Talbot, chief executive of the OCC. “Securing one Christmas No. 1 is a huge achievement in itself – to do it five times, in successive years, is unprecedented and frankly incredible.”

There’s Christmas cheer to be found up and down the chart, as Wham’s “Last Christmas” (RCA) dips 1-2, but racks up a market-leading 12.9 million streams. Meanwhile, another fundraising holiday number, Sidemen’s “Christmas Drillings,” is the highest climber, blasting 41-3; while yuletide favorites from Mariah Carey (“All I Want For Christmas Is You” down 2-4 via Columbia), Ed Sheeran and Elton John (“Merry Christmas” down 4-5 via Atlantic) and Brenda Lee (“Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree” down 5-8 via MCA) impact the top 10.

It’s the season to be jolly, and it’s also the season for punk act the K**ts to stage a return with a protest song. At No. 7, “F**k The Tories” (via Tactical Voting) is the highest new entry on the chart, published Dec. 23. It’s the English act’s third consecutive Christmas top 10, following “Boris Johnson Is Still A F**king C**t” in 2021 and “Boris Johnson Is A F**king C**t” in 2020, both peaking at No. 5.

The Christmas albums crown belongs to Taylor Swift, whose 2022 smash Midnights (EMI) lifts 3-1 on the Official Chart, with over 17,000 chart units, according to the OCC.

Midnights joins 2020’s Folklore as Swift’s only LPs to log three weeks at the U.K. summit, and it’s the only non-Christmas album to inhabit the current top 3, as Cliff Richard’s Christmas With Cliff (EastWest/Rhino) lifts 8-2, and Michael Bublé’s Christmas (Reprise) improves 4-3.

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