The race for the Christmas number one single has long been a cultural phenomenon in Ireland, reflecting changing musical tastes, marketing strategies, and social trends across decades. While Ireland’s charts have often mirrored UK patterns due to shared media and music industries, Irish Christmas number ones also reveal distinctly Irish stories – from The Pogues’ enduring anthem to U2’s charity efforts, from boyband dominance to X Factor phenomena. Understanding Irish Christmas chart history provides insight into Irish popular culture, music industry evolution, and what songs have soundtracked Irish Christmases across generations.
The Significance of the Christmas Number One
Before examining specific songs, it’s worth understanding why the Christmas number one matters in Irish music culture.
Cultural Moment: Achieving the Christmas number one represents a cultural achievement beyond ordinary chart success. It means your song becomes part of that year’s Christmas, associated forever with those memories and celebrations.
Commercial Value: The Christmas period represents the year’s biggest music sales period. A Christmas number one means substantial sales and significant financial reward.
Media Attention: The Christmas number one race receives extensive media coverage in Ireland, with radio, television, and newspapers tracking the competition as Christmas approaches.
Longevity: Christmas number ones often have longer life than ordinary hits. They enter Christmas playlists, return annually, and achieve cultural permanence unavailable to most songs.
Competition: Multiple factors make the Christmas number one particularly competitive: seasonal releases timed for Christmas, charity singles, X Factor winners, and established artists all compete simultaneously.
The 1960s: Traditional and Pop Convergence
The 1960s saw Irish charts dominated by British and American acts, with Christmas periods reflecting conservative musical tastes.
Ireland’s early chart history (Irish charts began in 1962) showed strong preference for:
- Traditional Christmas songs
- Easy listening artists
- British invasion acts (The Beatles, etc.)
- Irish showband performers
Notable 1960s Christmas number ones in Ireland included traditional pop and rock acts that appealed to conservative Irish tastes of the era.
The 1970s: Glam and Nostalgia
The 1970s brought more diverse Christmas number ones reflecting that decade’s musical variety.
Slade – “Merry Xmas Everybody” (1973): While this British glam rock anthem didn’t reach number one in Ireland during its original release, it became one of Ireland’s most beloved Christmas songs, returning to charts annually and becoming a pub and party staple. Its working-class celebration and singalong chorus made it particularly popular in Ireland.
The 1970s also saw:
The 1980s: Irish Acts and Charity Singles
The 1980s represented a golden age for Irish music internationally, and this showed in Irish Christmas charts.
Band Aid – “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” (1984): This charity single, featuring Bob Geldof and numerous stars, dominated Irish charts. Geldof’s Irish background made it particularly significant in Ireland. The single addressed Ethiopian famine and sold millions worldwide. In Ireland, it represented both Christmas sentiment and Irish involvement in global humanitarian efforts.
The Pogues feat. Kirsty MacColl – “Fairytale of New York” (1987): Perhaps the most important Irish Christmas song ever recorded, though it actually reached number two rather than number one in Ireland during its first chart run.
This song deserves special attention:
“Fairytale of New York” represents authentic Irish Christmas experience in ways sanitized Christmas pop never could. Its story of disappointment, drinking, argument, and lingering love speaks to Irish experiences and sensibilities. Despite not initially reaching number one, it has achieved greater longevity than virtually any other Irish Christmas song, returning to Irish charts annually and played constantly throughout every Irish Christmas.
The 1990s: Boyband Domination
The 1990s saw Irish boyband dominance of not just Irish but international charts, and this showed particularly at Christmas.
Boyzone: This Irish boyband captured multiple Irish Christmas number ones through the 1990s. Their Christmas victories included:
Westlife: Following Boyzone, Westlife (another Irish boyband) continued the tradition, often achieving Christmas number ones through the late 1990s into the 2000s.
The boyband era changed Irish Christmas charts:
The 2000s: X Factor and Backlash
The 2000s brought the X Factor phenomenon, which came to dominate UK and Irish Christmas charts with predictable regularity.
X Factor Winners: From the mid-2000s, the pattern became predictable – the X Factor winner’s single would be released in December and would reach number one. This happened repeatedly in Ireland:
“Fairytale of New York” Returns: As X Factor dominance became tiresome, campaigns emerged to get alternative songs to Christmas number one. In Ireland, “Fairytale of New York” became the anti-X Factor champion, with campaigns to buy it and push it up the charts against X Factor releases.
This represented:
Rage Against the Machine (2009): The UK campaign to get Rage Against the Machine’s “Killing in the Name” to Christmas number one (defeating X Factor’s Joe McElderry) also affected Irish charts, where the song performed well. This showed Irish participation in broader movements against X Factor chart dominance.
The 2010s: Streaming Era Changes
The 2010s brought fundamental changes to how charts work with the rise of streaming services.
Streaming Impact: Chart calculations now include streams, not just sales. This meant:
Ed Sheeran Dominance: British artist Ed Sheeran became particularly successful in Irish Christmas charts during the 2010s, reflecting his enormous popularity in Ireland generally.
Irish Acts: Irish artists continued achieving Christmas success:
Notable Irish Christmas Number Ones
Certain Christmas number ones deserve particular attention for their Irish significance:
U2 – Various Singles: Ireland’s most successful band achieved Christmas number ones at various points. Any U2 Christmas number one represented Irish pride and celebration of Ireland’s greatest cultural export.
The Script: This Dublin band achieved Christmas chart success, representing newer Irish acts continuing traditions of Irish music success.
Christy Moore, The Dubliners, etc.: Traditional Irish artists occasionally reached high chart positions at Christmas, though rarely number one. Their presence showed continued appreciation for Irish traditional music.
“The Pogues feat. Kirsty MacColl – ‘Fairytale of New York'”: Despite never originally reaching number one, its repeated returns and absolute dominance of Irish Christmas music consciousness make it arguably Ireland’s true Christmas number one regardless of official charts.
The Songs That Define Irish Christmas
Beyond official Christmas number ones, certain songs have become essential Irish Christmas music:
“Fairytale of New York”: As discussed, this is Ireland’s true Christmas anthem
International Classics:
Traditional Irish Elements:
Radio and Media Influence
Irish radio’s Christmas music programming significantly affects which songs define Irish Christmas beyond charts.
Christmas Playlists: Irish radio stations develop Christmas music rotations that heavily feature:
Local Radio: Local Irish radio stations often feature Irish and local artists more prominently than national stations, creating regional variation in Christmas music experiences.
RTÉ Influence: RTÉ (Irish national broadcaster) radio has historically shaped Irish Christmas music tastes through its programming choices, often giving Irish artists preference.
The Pub Factor
Irish pub culture significantly affects which Christmas songs become established favorites.
Singalong Requirements: Songs that work in Irish pub settings – with communal singing, simple choruses, emotional resonance – become Christmas standards regardless of chart performance.
“Fairytale of New York”: This song’s utter dominance in Irish Christmas pub culture explains its status better than any chart position. Walk into any Irish pub in December and you’ll hear it multiple times per night.
Traditional Sessions: Irish pubs hosting traditional music sessions at Christmas create different Christmas music experiences featuring Irish traditional music and songs rather than pop Christmas hits.
The Irish Diaspora Connection
Christmas number ones and popular Christmas songs connect Irish emigrants to home.
Irish Radio Abroad: Irish emigrants listen to Irish radio stations online, hearing the same Christmas songs as those at home, maintaining connection to Irish Christmas experiences.
“Fairytale of New York”: As a song specifically about Irish emigrants at Christmas, this resonates powerfully with Irish communities worldwide. It validates emigrant experiences while connecting them to Ireland.
Irish Pub Networks: Irish pubs worldwide play the same Christmas songs as pubs in Ireland, creating familiar Christmas soundscapes for emigrants far from home.
Controversy and Debate
Christmas number ones and Christmas music generally create ongoing debates in Ireland:
“Fairytale of New York” Language: The song’s use of slurs creates regular debate about whether it should be played. Most Irish radio stations continue playing it, sometimes with edited versions, arguing its artistic merit outweighs offense.
Manufactured vs. Authentic: Continuing debates about X Factor-style manufactured hits versus “authentic” music affect Christmas charts and listening.
Religious vs. Secular: Some discussion occurs about balance between religious Christmas music (carols, hymns) and secular Christmas pop.
Too Early: Regular complaints about Christmas music starting too early in shops and on radio, though this hasn’t stopped the practice.
Christmas Albums
Beyond singles, Christmas albums have played important roles in Irish Christmas music:
Irish Artists’ Christmas Albums: Various Irish artists have released Christmas albums that become Irish Christmas staples.
Classical Christmas: Irish classical musicians and choirs have produced Christmas albums that appeal to different demographics than pop Christmas music.
Traditional Irish Christmas: Albums of Irish traditional music arranged for Christmas have found strong markets.
The Future of Irish Christmas Charts
The Christmas number one race faces an uncertain future in streaming-dominated music consumption.
Declining Significance: As streaming makes charts less relevant generally, Christmas number one races matter less than they did.
Organic Patterns: Streaming reveals what people actually listen to rather than strategic purchasing, showing “Fairytale of New York” and other classics dominate actual Irish Christmas listening regardless of what’s officially number one.
New Releases Less Dominant: New Christmas releases struggle against streaming of established classics, making it harder for new Christmas songs to achieve lasting significance.
Authenticity Valued: Irish audiences increasingly value authentic connection over manufactured pop, potentially opening space for different Christmas music approaches.
Conclusion
Irish Christmas number ones across decades tell stories about Irish culture, music industry evolution, and what songs have provided soundtracks to Irish Christmases. From Bob Geldof’s charity work to Boyzone’s manufactured pop dominance, from X Factor predictability to “Fairytale of New York”‘s enduring reign, these chart battles reveal Irish tastes, values, and evolution.
What’s clear is that regardless of official charts, certain songs define Irish Christmas music consciousness: “Fairytale of New York” above all, but also international classics like “Last Christmas” and traditional elements that persist across generations. The Christmas number one race may matter less in the streaming era, but the songs that unite Irish people at Christmas – in pubs, homes, and celebrations – continue creating shared Irish Christmas experiences.
For Irish people, Christmas music connects them to memories, to each other, and to Irish identity. Whether officially number one or not, the songs that matter are those that capture Irish Christmas spirit and create the soundtrack to Irish Christmas celebrations – emotional, authentic, often imperfect, but genuinely meaningful in ways manufactured Christmas pop rarely achieves.
Author: jonathan
Jonathan is the publisher of Irishtopia.net, Anglotopia.net, and Londontopia.net. He's passionate about travel and learning about other cultures. He's been to Ireland several times, and uses his travel expertise for Irishtopia!
