17th May 2026

It's a hat-trick of Hot Chocolate early 70's oldies on top as Love Is Life grabs a 2nd week on top, following its 2015 return. It was their very first hit, and still a gem and their 9th number one in total. The main challenge was from Eurovision, The Story Of Fire Saga movie referencing Ya Ya Ya ("Play Ya Ya Ding Dong!" says the Icelandic drunk in the movie to Will Ferrell, who also put in a filmed appearance to celebrate the 70th anniversary in Vienna. JONAS LOVV were fab for Norway, and the record is very White Stripes but soaring guitar pop, new in at 3. The winner of the contest, Bangaranga for Bulgaria had an amazing dance routine and banging tune, in at 90, with Sweden's Rave entry My System new at 93 for Felicia, and Australia's Delta Goodrem also in at 95 with the classy Eclipse, and an amazingly professional performance and her 3rd chart entry in 25 years here. The UK, of course, was last, because the BBC isn't keen to win anytime in the foreseeable future, they don't have the money to risk another Sam Ryder.

Reverend And The Makers have a new album out, so I have scoured tracks better than the current collab with Robbie Williams, and there are two: Forever at 74, and Crying Over You in at 5, all Duane Eddy twangy guitar and soaring tune, it really is about time they got a big break on TV to promote their quality stuff. Anyway, that's approaching a 10th top 10 for them in 20 years, and well over twice that in total charted entries. Half the album is already fab with charted tracks and an option on further tracks to come when my chart is less crowded. Demo Lovato meanwhile has another top 10 - she was in Story Of Fire Saga getting blown to bits, and appropriately has a fab album track at 7. Needs to be a single ASAP!

Other new entries: sombr is back with a 5th charted track, Potential, at 82, and Shaggy is on a roll of late, with or without Sting, this time it's with, and actual singing Bill Wither's classic Ain't No Sunshine , a song that topped my charts for both Bill, and Michael Jackson, who did it in 1972. Shaggy does a decent job actually, very very deep vocal. In at 85, and at 88 Natalie Imbruglia is back 28 years on from Torn debuting. That sounds highly unlikely, and yet it is reality. Wow! Upside Down is pretty good and has a feel of Stranger Things with the title.

Cerrone has had a revival over the last few years too, and that continues with New Highs at 89 for a chart span of 48 years. That makes Natalie seem a spring chicken. The Chemical Brothers are having a hit with a 2015 single that flopped, Go, and so that belatedly debuts now to keep their run at around 30 years, just ahead of Chris Rainbow at 92 with Tik Tok biggie Be Like A Woman. Christopher Rainbow, as he was in 1974, hit 11 in my charts of the time but Solid State Brain wasn't a hit sadly. Nor were any of his later singles and albums, despite helping with The Alan Parsons Project, and sadly he died over a decade ago so it's not a lot of consolation to him, but it is lovely for me to see him charting around the lower end of the US and UK Hot 100 with the lovely 1979 track.

In other news Bakermat, The Hoosiers and Dizzee Rascal all have decent new singles out and return to my charts a mere decade or two on from debuts: I say "mere" because they are clustered with new singles from two duo legends of the 1960's: The Rolling Stones' Mick Jagger and Keith Richard (plus The Small Faces Ronnie Wood) In The Stars making it a whopping 57 years since Honky Tonk Women debuted in my charts, and Macca & Ringo having a Beatles duet for the first time ever on Paul's new Home To Us. The Beatles topped my first official chart for the first time I discovered the UK Pick Of The Pops chart show in September 1968, so from Hey Jude to Home To Us, it's been a 58-year record-breaking chart span for me. And still a fan of ooh 63 years and counting since I was a little kiddie.

1 4 1 2 LOVE IS LIFE - Hot Chocolate 235000

2 1 1 3 BROTHER LOUIE - Hot Chocolate featuring Alexis Korner 400000

3 NEW 3 1 YA YA YA - JONAS LOVV 85000

4 5 4 2 LIFE'S TOO SHORT - The Lightning Seeds 125000

5 NEW 5 1 CRYING OVER YOU - Reverend and The Makers 60000

6 7 6 3 YOU'LL ALWAYS BE A FRIEND - Hot Chocolate 123000

7 19 7 4 LOVE CONTROLLER - Demi Lovato 98300

8 3 3 8 PHOENIX - Marshmello x Portugal. The Man 285950

9 9 9 3 EMMA - Hot Chocolate 132000

10 6 1 7 CLICK CLACK SYMPHONY - RAYE featuring Hans Zimmer 677100

11 10 10 7 SUGAR - Simien & Akon 169150

12 2 2 4 ONE BAD APPLE - The Osmonds 242400

13 17 13 5 CHUCK THE MONEY - Stephen Sanchez 103100

14 12 12 9 5:00 AM - Michael Schulte 164050

15 13 1 14 LUCKY AGAIN - Lykke Li 773400

16 11 5 14 DRIVE SAFE - Myles Smith & Niall Horan 456600

17 20 17 2 MASTER JACK - Four Jacks And A Jill 43000

18 8 1 3 I BELIEVE (IN LOVE) - Hot Chocolate 240000

19 26 19 7 CARRY ON - Jungle 101750

20 36 20 4 FOCU 'RANNI - ROSALIA 56800

21 14 8 11 WHY DON'T YOU - Squeeze 207200

22 16 5 12 VERTIGO - AVALAN ROKSTON 443900

23 15 2 9 YOU'RE A SUPERSTAR - Take That 475950

24 21 20 7 STAY - Leony & Calum Scott 106350

25 31 25 5 THEME FROM 'HARRY'S GAME' - Clannad 72350

26 27 26 6 HOT DAMN - Dadi Freyr 83100

27 18 8 14 HOMEWRECKER - sombr 331200

28 40 28 4 MR KNOW IT ALL - Teddy Swims 53800

29 33 29 5 I FEEL SO FREE - Madonna 69200

30 23 4 11 AMERICAN GIRLS - Harry Styles 364500

31 34 31 6 BEAUTY PAGEANT - Holly Humberstone 79600

32 22 13 12 TO LOVE SOMEBODY - Holly Humberstone 209700

33 30 17 11 UNIVERSAL SOLDIER - Depeche Mode 179500

34 44 34 3 RUMOURS - Hot Chocolate 41250

35 39 35 6 THERE WAS SUN - Nothing But Thieves 60450

36 38 36 5 FIRST LIGHT - Lana Del Ray 65200

37 25 1 14 DON'T WANT YOUR LOVE - Illenium & Ellie Goulding 764550

38 28 15 8 CALIFORNIA - Jessie J 151900

39 54 39 3 YOU COULD'VE BEEN A LADY - Hot Chocolate 32700

40 62 40 2 THEME FROM THE ONEDIN LINE (SPARTACUS: ADAGIO OF SPARTACUS AND PHRYGIA) - Vienna Philharmonic & Aram Khachaturian 24400

41 32 13 24 DRACULA - Tame Impala 394850

42 35 1 23 FREE LOVE - Cast 1393550

43 50 43 4 IN MY ROOM - Linda Ronstadt 43550

44 41 1 23 RELIQUIA - ROSALIA 1260050

45 48 45 6 UP OUT & GONE - Ne-Yo 54000

46 57 46 4 FREE TO LOVE - Duran Duran featuring Nile Rodgers 35150

47 29 10 8 SIGN OF THE TIMES - Harry Styles 155050

48 51 48 6 BE WITH YOU - Muse 51350

49 58 49 3 NEVER CAN SAY GOODBYE - The Jackson 5 27100

50 47 1 17 APERTURE - Harry Styles 1016800

51 59 51 3 CAN'T SIT STILL - Lainey Wilson 25950

52 49 37 8 BE HER - Ella Langley 95000

53 56 53 4 JOKE ABOUT DIVORCE - Blossoms 33450

54 37 1 12 I CAN'T WAIT - Bob Sinclar & Kiesza 839300

55 42 1 32 LOTUS - Rose Gray 1510650

56 55 34 8 GET WHAT YOU GIVE - Scouting For Girls 91450

57 45 37 7 STAY WITH ME TILL DAWN - Judie Tzuke 89350

58 61 58 8 LOVE IN EXILE - Charlie Puth featuring Michael McDonald & Kenny Loggins 50500

59 43 7 12 PRAYER - David Guetta, Kiko & Olivier Giacomotto 357500

60 85 60 2 STRUCK - Charlotte MacInnes 13000

61 72 61 4 YOU CAME YOU SAW YOU CONQUERED - The Ronettes 21100

62 73 62 2 I'LL BE THERE - The Jackson 5 12800

63 53 13 15 STARLIGHT - Cannons 221650

64 80 64 4 LITTLE MORE TIME - Niall Horan 18500

65 78 65 3 FLOWERS - Blue 13600

66 24 24 11 WHEN YOU ARE A KING - White Plains 127150

67 60 60 6 UNDEFEATED CHAMPION - Melanie C 37200

68 68 68 4 DO I LOVE YOU? - The Ronettes 22600

69 75 69 3 COME BACK TO ME - Haircut 100 15400

70 74 70 4 F***ED UP - Reverend and The Makers featuring Robbie Williams 17800

71 52 10 12 RIDE - Jessie Ware 265700

72 65 4 27 YOUR LAST SONG - The Lottery Winners 867000

73 89 73 3 BRING YOUR LOVE - Madonna & Sabrina Carpenter 9500

74 NEW 74 1 FOREVER - Reverend and The Makers 5200

75 79 75 4 DROP DEAD - Olivia Rodrigo 17000

76 88 76 3 ELECTRIC CIRCUS - Nelly Furtado, Boi 1da & Canada Soccer 11800

77 64 54 9 HELL ON EARTH - Squeeze 67100

78 69 69 7 TOUCH BY AN ANGEL - Maxi Priest 34000

79 91 79 2 BUZZING - Tom Speight 6100

80 83 80 2 OH NO! NOT THE BEAST DAY - Marsha Hunt 7400

81 67 37 12 FEVER DREAM - Alex Warren 132250

82 NEW 82 1 POTENTIAL - sombr 3600

83 87 83 3 WE GO BACK - Keith Urban featuring Michael McDonald 7800

84 90 84 3 (THE BEST PART OF) BREAKIN' UP - The Ronettes 6700

85 NEW 85 1 AIN'T NO SUNSHINE - Shaggy featuring Sting 3000

86 63 32 11 NEW RELIGION - Bebe Rexha & Faithless 117850

87 93 87 2 CHAKZILLA - Chaka Khan featuring Sia 4300

88 NEW 88 1 UPSIDE DOWN - Natalie Imbruglia 2400

89 NEW 89 1 NEW HIGHS - Cerrone & Adi Oasis 2200

90 NEW 90 1 BANGARANGA - Dara 2000

91 NEW 91 1 GO - The Chemical Brothers 1900

92 NEW 92 1 BE LIKE A WOMAN - Chris Rainbow 1800

93 NEW 93 1 MY SYSTEM - FELICIA 1700

94 95 94 2 WHAT DO I GET? - Buzzcocks 3100

95 NEW 95 1 ECLIPSE - Delta Goodrem 1500

96 NEW 96 1 I LOVE LIFE - Bakermat & RANI 1400

97 NEW 97 1 IN THE STARS - The Rolling Stones 1300

98 NEW 98 1 HOME TO US - Paul McCartney & Ringo Starr 1200

99 NEW 99 1 C U DANCE - Dizzee Rascal 1100

100 NEW 100 1 JIGSAW HEART - The Hoosiers 1000

DROP OUTS

46 1 11 THE IMMIGRANT - Neil Sedaka 654250

66 24 11 THESE NIGHTS - Cannons 128000

70 1 21 TELL ME THERE'S A HEAVEN - Chris Rea 1225950

71 1 48 GOD ONLY KNOWS - The Beach Boys 1321550

76 1 34 SECRETS - Miley Cyrus featuring Lindsey Buckingham and Mick Fleetwood 1437050

77 20 11 LOST - almost monday 163050

81 74 3 SLEDGEHAMMER - Peter Gabriel 13200

82 15 13 FEELS LIKE HEAVEN - Loreen 208350

84 37 8 JUST WORDS - Midge Ure 76600

86 35 9 SAVE ME TONIGHT - Jennifer Lopez & David Guetta 99500

92 70 6 HOUSE TOUR - Sabrina Carpenter 28200

94 83 4 GOOD NEWS - Mari Wilson 9600

Hi there John!

Nice to see Eurovision songs making an impact in your chart, as well as the new peaks for "Chuck The Money", "Carry On", "Beauty Pageant", "First Light", "Be With You" and "Drop Dead", the big gains for "Mr. Know It All", "Free To Love", "Struck", "I'll Be There", "Little More Time" and "Bring Your Love" and the debuts for "Potential", "Go" and "Home To Us".

Great chart!

Take care

Hi John,

good to see Charlotte climbing. I appreciate the Hot Chocolate double on top. Nice to see my three favourite ESC songs entering (My System, Eclipse and Bangaranga) + the new Sombr song.