Posted May 4, 20169 yr A thread inspired by Leicester's recent Premier League triumph <3 ranks for me as one of the biggest upsets in any sort of competition, alongside Douglas beating Tyson, Greece winning the Euro 2004, and Ghost Loft winning BJSC Rage Against The Machine beating Joe McElderry doesn't really need an explanation Spiller beating True Steppers/Bowers/Beckham, this was obviously a bit before I knew anything about the charts but I get the impression this was quite a surprise at the time (because of Out Of Your Mind being heavily hyped/promoted, widely tipped for #1 plus I think was still leading going into the final day)? (any more knowledgeable posters correct me if I'm wrong on any of that pls) So have there been any other notable "upsets" in the charts over the years? (apologies if there's already been a thread just like this, I'm just trying to be topical over here)
May 4, 20169 yr Author I mean results that actually WERE 'unlikely', none of this Cheryl/MAGIC! or Tinie/Lost Frequencies nonsense (although I'm sure you could fill out a whole thread based on moments of buzzjack being awful predictors too)
May 4, 20169 yr Pretty sure One True Voice were expected to trounce Girls Aloud to Xmas #1 and to win Popstars: The Rivals in 2002. Until Pete Waterman landed them with that turkey of a single and dressed them live five Rick Astley's and Louis Walsh somehow came up with basically the best reality show coronation single anybody has ever been given. Even despite all that, OTV were still heavily tipped to win until the first midweeks came in. Mad World as the Xmas #1 the following year was a major shock too. Nobody saw that coming...or The Darkness for that matter, it was supposed to be Idols' Happy Xmas (War Is Over) at #1!
May 4, 20169 yr Just like week Prince was meant to occupy the entire top 3 albums after his death until Beyoncé Beyoncéd an album. I'm sure I can think of more too.
May 4, 20169 yr I think Pink's 'Just Like A Pill' going to #1 was a bit of a shock as no one was expecting it to debut that high as it was the 3rd single from the album and the previous single made #6. I might be wrong though, maybe it was just a shock to me? Maybe it was a low sales week or something. Also Blu Cantrell/Sean Paul, or again was that just me?
May 4, 20169 yr Biggest chart upset for me was us losing out on the first non-X Factor/charity/campaign Christmas #1 since 2003 last year when The NHS Choir took the spot from Justin Bieber. What made it even more upsetting was the fact I was actually supporting a Justin Bieber song! :lol:
May 4, 20169 yr American Life starting and peaking at #2, think everybody (me included) thought it was a 100% guaranteed #1
May 4, 20169 yr American Life starting and peaking at #2, think everybody (me included) thought it was a 100% guaranteed #1 good thing that didn't make #1 too, as its top 40 chart run was terrible. also, just checked and it was the iconic Room 5 who kept her off #1 *_*
May 4, 20169 yr Shut Up and Dance going in at number 2 with Raving I'm Raving in 1992 with (I'm guessing) practically no air play when all their previous singles had gone in around no.50...but we all know why that was, eh, Marc Cohn? Arctic Monkeys hitting number 1 with their debut was a big surprise - to me anyway. Did this get a lot of daytime play in the weeks before it got released or was it all on the Evening Session / MTV2 etc? I can't accept Spiller as a surprise. It was played for several weeks on Radio 1 before it got released and everyone knew it was in a two horse race early on that week...and it was much better than Posh's vocoder nightmare anyway. Edited May 4, 20169 yr by richie
May 4, 20169 yr American Life starting and peaking at #2, think everybody (me included) thought it was a 100% guaranteed #1 good thing that didn't make #1 too, as its top 40 chart run was terrible. also, just checked and it was the iconic Room 5 who kept her off #1 *_* Indeed! I believe it would be the worst selling #1 ever given it has only sold roughly 80k. Seems strange to think this was apparently such a huge contender for #1 when you look back at its chart performance, the fact it had a pathetic official video after the original was banned and has vocal haters within her fanbase. Suppose this was at a time when a Madonna comeback was a huge event and her popularity had been sky-high ever since the mid-90s, following a small blip.
May 4, 20169 yr Eva Cassidy and Katie Melua's version of Wonderful World getting to number one in 2007.
May 4, 20169 yr Arctic Monkeys hitting number 1 with their debut was a big surprise - to me anyway. Did this get a lot of daytime play in the weeks before it got released or was it all on the Evening Session / MTV2 etc? I don't think Arctic Monkeys was a huge surprise, I remember there being massive hype around the band at that time after building up a huge online fanbase.
May 4, 20169 yr I don't think Arctic Monkeys was a huge surprise, I remember there being massive hype around the band at that time after building up a huge online fanbase. They were hyped but mainly by indie enthusiasts, it was a surprise for them to hit the no1 spot. Think it was only B List on radio 1 until it charted too so radio 1 daytime wasn't TOTALLY behind it.
May 4, 20169 yr Bob The Builder taking the 2000 Christmas no.1 spot, halting Westlife's consecutive run of No.1's has to be top.
May 4, 20169 yr PJ & Duncan Let's Get Ready to Rumble randomly going to number 1 thanks to one TV performance, and beating Pink's monster hit Just Give Me a Reason in the process, I'd say was quite an upset! I think that's one of the biggest chart surprises of recent years for me.
May 4, 20169 yr Love The Way You Lie, Moves Like Jagger and Lean On as more recent ones. Songs you would expect to've been #1 based on their airplay and visibility. Years & Years Shine being pipped to the post by whatever it was is also a recent travesty. I think that was expected to smash as *even better than King* which people who didn't already know the band were surprised by at the time.
Create an account or sign in to comment