The earliest reference i have found is when Noel Edmonds introduces Boney M's Mary's Boy Child in the 1978 Christmas Day Top of the Pops.

 

In the 50s and 60s, being top during Christmas week was just being top of another chart, by the time Slade and Wizzard were battling it out in 1973 it became a special occasion to be top during Christmas so are there any earlier references to the term 'Christmas number one' prior to 1978?

No source as such but I was always under the impression the whole thing was kicked off big style by Wizzard vs Slade in 1973 and prior to that there was little fuss about it.

I don’t have any specific references but did purchase the ‘Christmas Number Ones’ book produced by the OCC 2 years ago which was great! The modern Christmas chart really starts in 1973 but John Lennon releasing his classic the year before put the situation in record companies minds!

I don’t have any specific references but did purchase the ‘Christmas Number Ones’ book produced by the OCC 2 years ago which was great! The modern Christmas chart really starts in 1973 but John Lennon releasing his classic the year before put the situation in record companies minds!

 

Got that on Amazon last year when it was in the Prime sale for £4.99 and totally forgot to read it :lol: Just dug it out so I'll give it a read.

Edited December 18, 20231 yr by Jαsє

I also think it started in 1973. Or at least, that was the year when labels really concentrated on getting a record to number 1 at Christmas and so pulled out all the stops. The Slade single was advertised on TV in the days leading up to its release, something that was seen as exceptional at the time. The record also apparently shipped 500,000 copies in its first week, a sign that the label were pulling out all the stops to ensure it was Christmas number 1.

I looked around for this a lot online, when there were arguments about whether Cliff or Elvis had the Christmas number 1.

 

The consensus seem to be 1973 - which is part of the reason why there is disagreement about previous years, because nobody really thought about the race between Elvis and Cliff being a Christmas number 1 race, therefore no one can remember it, and therefore know what song people considered to be the number 1 on Christmas Day.

Got that on Amazon last year when it was in the Prime sale for £4.99 and totally forgot to read it :lol: Just dug it out so I'll give it a read.

 

It’s well worth a read. Explains the context behind the chart and the detail about the songs. Really enjoyed it myself but I’m really into the historical and cultural context of the charts 😃

I also think it started in 1973. Or at least, that was the year when labels really concentrated on getting a record to number 1 at Christmas and so pulled out all the stops. The Slade single was advertised on TV in the days leading up to its release, something that was seen as exceptional at the time. The record also apparently shipped 500,000 copies in its first week, a sign that the label were pulling out all the stops to ensure it was Christmas number 1.

 

Made sense I suppose with the amount of shoppers out at this time of year and consumer spending increasing a lot despite the depressed times of the era.