DanChartFan

I imagine certain national anthems would be well-known all over the globe. God Save The Queen/King would have been have considered the anthem of a large number of other countries and territories at various times, and the Star-Spangled banner must be very widely known too. I'd also imagine that instrumentals have a bit of an edge here too, given they wouldn't need translating for different countries, though I'm not sure which. I did think of things like the theme from the Great Escape, and the Dambusters March, which I'd assume are pretty well known tunes.

December 5th results Vote A - 1628 votes cast 1989 - Band Aid II - Do They Know It's Christmas - 27% (440 votes) 2009 - Rage Against The Machine - Killing In The Name - 73% (1188 votes) Vote B - 854 votes cast 1981 - Human League - Don't You Want Me - 69.3% (592 votes) 2016 - Clean Bandit - Rockabye - 30.7% (262 votes) December 6th voting open Vote C - 1974 Mud - Lonely This Christmas 2006 Leona Lewis - A Moment Like This Vote D - 1987 Pet Shop Boys - Always On My Mind 2002 Girls Aloud - Sound Of The Underground In Vote C the oldest contender still in the contest is up against one of most recent. Mud did get more straight votes and a higher percentage in their first round vote than Leona did, but Leona could benefit this time from being newer. In Vote D the contenders had very similar vote totals and percentages in Round 1, albeit with the Pet Shop Boys marginally higher on both measures, so this could be a close one.

I just looked, out of interest, and in Xmas week 2000 Holler was dropping three places to #46, whilst Out Of Your Mind was re-entering at #79. Maybe Holler would have sold more in xmas week if it had been 'Hollier' as Dong's slip of the keyboard rebranded it.

I think the Monster Mash is my favourite one.

So for Round 2 it looks like they may have advanced just the winner of each of the 18 round 1 votes, in which case the contenders still in the competition are as listed below. The 80s come out as the most represented decade at this stage with 6 songs still in the competition, although the 00s are close behind with 5 still remaining. We've already said goodbye altogether to the 50s, the 60s and the 20s, whilst the 10s cling on for dear life with just the one representative, Clean Bandit. The oldest contender still in the competition is Mud from 1974 and the newest one is the aforementioned Clean Bandit from 2016. Slade had the highest number of straight votes for an eliminated contender, whilst Cliff Richard's Mistletoe and Wine had the higest percentage of their vote of any eliminated contender. I can see no pattern in how they are pairing the contenders in Round 2, so I assume they had a random draw or something. Contenders for Round 2 In order of which round 1 vote they won 1. Leona Lewis 2. Band Aid II 3. Alexandra Burke 4. Rage Against The Machine 5. Mud 6. Queen 7. Michael Jackson 8. Spice Girls (2B1) 9. Spice Girls 10. Spice Girls (G) 11. Clean Bandit 12. Human League 13. Robbie Williams and Nicole Kidman 14. Girls Aloud 15. Band Aid 16. Shakin’ Stevens 17. Jackie Wilson 18. Pet Shop Boys In age order 1974 Mud 1975/1991 Queen 1981 Human League 1984 Band Aid 1985 Shakin’ Stevens 1986 Jackie Wilson 1987 Pet Shop Boys 1989 Band Aid II 1995 Michael Jackson 1996 Spice Girls 1997 Spice Girls 1998 Spice Girls 2002 Robbie Williams and Nicole Kidman 2003 Girls Aloud 2006 Leona Lewis 2008 Alexandra Burke 2009 Rage Against The Machine 2016 Clean Bandit

Round 2 has now begun Vote A - 1989 - Band Aid II - Do They Know It's Christmas 2009 - Rage Against The Machine - Killing In The Name Vote B - 1981 - Human League - Don't You Want Me 2016 - Clean Bandit - Rockabye Vote A is a clash of the titans, with Rage being the contender who got the highest amoung of straight votes in round 1, and Band Aid II getting the third highest perecentage, but I'd guess the number of straight votes is a better measure of success and that Rage will probably win this one. In Vote B Human League gained both more votes and a higher perecentage of the vote in their voting than Clean Bandit did in theirs, so on the stats they should win, but they weren't massively ahead of Clean Bandit by either measure, so it could be close and it's possible that there could be a surprise here.

Here's the full rankings for round 1 by both straight votes and percentage of the vote Ranking on straight votes 959 – 2009 – Rage Against The Machine – Killing In The Name 780 – 1995 – Michael Jackson – Earth Song 732 – 1996 – Spice Girls – 2 Become 1 606 – 2008 – Alexandra Burke - Hallelujah 463 – 1973 – Slade – Merry Xmas Everybody 446 – 1975/1991 – Queen – Bohemian Rhapsody 435 – 1998 – Spice Girls – Goodbye 422 - 2002 – Girls Aloud – Sound Of The Underground 421 – 1997 – Spice Girls – Too Much 415 – 2012 – Justice Collective – He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother 415 – 1992 – Whitney Houston – I Will Always Love You 411 – 1987 – Pet Shop Boys – Always On My Mind 404 – 1974 – Mud – Lonely This Christmas 388 – 1989 – Band Aid II – Do They Know It’s Christmas 382 – 1984 – Band Aid – Do They Know It’s Christmas 340 – 2006 – Leona Lewis – A Moment Like This 325 – 1985 – Shakin’ Stevens – Merry Christmas Everyone 315 – 2001 – Robbie Williams and Nicole Kidman – Something Stupid 305 – 1978 – Boney M – Mary‘s Boy Child – Oh My Lord 299 – 1988 – Cliff Richard – Mistletoe And Wine 271 – 1976 – Johnny Mathis – When A Child Is Born 270 – 1994 – East 17 – Stay Another Day 247 – 1986 – Jackie Wilson – Reet Petite 240 – 1977 – Wings – Mull of Kintyre 233 – 2005 – Shayne Ward – That’s My Goal 230 – 1981 – Human League – Don’t You Want Me 228 – 1979 – Pink Floyd – Another Brick In The Wall 225 – 1990 – Cliff Richard – Saviour’s Day 225 – 1964 – The Beatles – I Feel Fine 162 – 2016 – Clean Bandit – Rockabye 158 – 1965 – The Beatles – Day Tripper 155 – 1957 – Harry Belafonte – Mary’s Boy Child 153 – 2010 – Matt Cardle – When We Collide 150 – 2002 – Flying Pickets – Only You 150 – 1999 – Westlife – I Have A Dream 142 – 2018 – LadBaby – We Built This City 141 – 1993 – Mr Blobby – Mr Blobby 138 – 2004 – Band Aid 20 – Do They Know It’s Christmas 135 – 2017 – Ed Sheeran - Perfect 129 – 1963 – The Beatles – I Want To Hold Your Hand 125 – 1962 – Elvis Presley – Return To Sender 107 – 1967 – The Beatles – Hello Goodbye 102 – 1968 – The Scaffold – Lily The Pink 100 – 1971 – Benny Hill – Ernie The Fastest Milkman In The West 94 – 2003 – Michael Andrews and Gary Jules – Mad World 89 – 1972 – Little Jimmy Osmond – Long Haired Lover From Liverpool 88 – 2019 – LadBaby – I Love Sausage Rolls 76 – 1961 – Danny Williams – Moon River 74 – 1970 – Dave Edmunds Rockpile – I Hear You Knockin’ 74 – 2007 – Leon Jackson – When You Believe 73 – 2000 – Bob The Builder – Can We Fix It? 70 – 1980 – St Winifred’s School Choir – There’s No One Quite Like Grandma 61 – 1959 – Emile Ford and The Checkmates – What Do You Want To Make Those Eyes At Me For 56 – 2013 – Sam Bailey – Skyscraper 54 – 2014 – Ben Haenow – Something I Need 50 – 1954 – Winifred Atwell – Let’s Have Another Party 47 – 1956 – Johnnie Ray – Just Walkin’ In The Rain 44 – 1958 – Conway Twitty – It’s Only Make Believe 42 – 2015 – The Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Choir – A Bridge Over You 39 – 2020 – LadBaby – Don’t Stop Me Eatin’ 35 – 1966 – Tom Jones – Green Green Grass Of Home 27 – 1953 – Frankie Laine – Answer Me 26 – 1960 – Cliff Richard and The Shadows – I Love You 17 – 1952 – Al Martino – Here In My Heart 16 – 2011 – Military Wives/Gareth Malone – Wherever You Are 15 – 1955 – Dickie Valentine Christmas Alphabet Ranking on percentage of the votes 74.8% - 1984 – Band Aid – Do They Know It’s Christmas 67.2% - 1996 – Spice Girls – 2 Become 1 65.6% - 1989 – Band Aid II – Do They Know It’s Christmas 62.5% - 2008 – Alexandra Burke – Hallelujah 60.2% - 1987 – Pet Shop Boys – Always On My Mind 57.9% - 2002 – Girls Aloud – Sound Of The Underground 57% - 1985 – Shakin’ Stevens – Merry Christmas Everyone 56.5% - 1986 – Jackie Wilson – Reet Petite 55.7% - 1998 – Spice Girls - Goodbye 54.2% - 1974 – Mud – Lonely This Christmas 52.2% - 1997 – Spice Girls – Too Much 51.8% - 2009 – Rage Against The Machine – Killing In The Name 51.7% - 1995 – Michael Jackson – Earth Song 50.3% - 1975/1991 – Queen – Bohemian Rhapsody 46% - 2006 – Leona Lewis – A Moment Like This 41.6% - 2001 – Robbie Williams and Nicole Kidman – Something Stupid 41% - 1988 – Cliff Richard – Mistletoe And Wine 40.6% - 1981 – Human League – Don’t You Want Me 37.8% - 1978 – Boney M – Mary‘s Boy Child – Oh My Lord 34.1% - 2005 – Shayne Ward – That’s My Goal 32% - 2016 – Clean Bandit - Rockabye 30.4% - 1994 – East 17 – Stay Another Day 29.7% - 1982 – Renee and Renato – Save Your Love 29.6% - 1999 – Westlife – I Have A Dream 29.2% - 1979 – Pink Floyd – Another Brick In The Wall 27.5% - 2012 – Justice Collective – He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother 25% - 1973 – Slade – Merry Xmas Everybody 24.7% - 1962 – Elvis Presley – Return To Sender 24.2% - 2004 – Band Aid 20 – Do They Know It’s Christmas 23.8% - 2017 – Ed Sheeran – Perfect 23.3% - 1968 – The Scaffold – Lily The Pink 23.2% - 1990 – Cliff Richard – Saviour’s Day 22.4% - 1992 – Whitney Houston – I Will Always Love You 22% - 1977 – Wings – Mull of Kintyre 22% - 1963 – The Beatles – I Want To Hold Your Hand 21.5% - 1965 – The Beatles – Day Tripper 20.6% - 1983 – Flying Pickets – Only You 20.5% - 2010 – Matt Cardle – When We Collide 20.1% - 2019 – LadBaby – I Love Sausage Rolls 18.9% - 1993 – Mr Blobby – Mr Blobby 18.8% - 2018 – LadBaby – We Built This City 18.8% - 1967 – The Beatles – Hello Goodbye 18.4% - 2003 – Michael Andrews and Gary Jules – Mad World 18% - 1976 – Johnny Mathis – When A Child Is Born 17.5% - 1957 – Harry Belafonte – Mary’s Boy Child 17% - 1971 – Benny Hill – Ernie The Fastest Milkman In The West 13.8% - 1980 – St Winifred’s School Choir – There’s No One Quite Like Grandma 12.9% - 2000 – Bob The Builder – Can We Fix It? 12.6% - 2007 – Leon Jackson – When You Believe 10.1% - 1970 – Dave Edmunds Rockpile – I Hear You Knockin’ 9.9% - 1982 – Renee and Renato – Save Your Love 9.7% - 1961 – Danny Williams – Moon River 9.2% - 1972 – Little Jimmy Osmond – Long Haired Lover From Liverpool 6.8% - 1966 – Tom Jones – Green Green Grass Of Home 6.7% - 2014 – Ben Haenow – Something I Need 6.3% - 1956 – Johnnie Ray – Just Walkin’ In The Rain 5.6% - 1959 – Emile Ford and The Checkmates – What Do You Want To Make Those Eyes At Me For 5.4% - 2015 – The Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Choir – A Bridge Over You 5.2% - 1954 – Winifred Atwell – Let’s Have Another Party 5.1% - 2013 – Sam Bailey – Skyscraper 4.6% - 1953 – Frankie Laine – Answer Me 3.2% - 1960 – Cliff Richard and The Shadows – I Love You 2.9% - 1958 – Conway Twitty – It’s Only Make Believe 2.3% - 1952 – Al Martino – Here In My Heart 1.8% - 2011 – Military Wives/Gareth Malone – Wherever You Are 0.8% – 1955 – Dickie Valentine Christmas Alphabet

December 4th results Vote 17 - 437 votes cast 1968 - The Scaffold - Lily The Pink - 23.3% (102 votes) 1986 - Jackie Wilson - Reet Petite - 56.5% (247 votes) 2019 - LadBaby - I Love Sausage Rolls - 20.1% (88 votes) Vote 18 - 683 votes cast 1987 - Pet Shop Boys - Always On My Mind - 60.2% (411 votes) 2005 - Shayne Ward - That's My Goal - 34.1% (233 votes) 2020 - LadBaby - Don't Stop Me Eatin - 5.7% (39 votes)

3rd December results - Vote 15 - 511 votes cast 1966 - Tom Jones - Green Green Grass Of Home - 6.8% (35 votes) 1984 - Band Aid - Do They Know It's Christmas - 74.8% (382 votes) 2003 - Michael Andrew and Gary Jules - Mad World - 18.4% (94 votes) Vote 16 - 570 votes cast 1967 - The Beatles - Hello Goodbye - 18.8% (107 votes) 1985 - Shakin' Stevens - Merry Christmas Everyone - 57% (325 votes) 2004 - Band Aid 20 - Do They Know It's Christmas - 24.2% (138 votes) 4th December voting open Vote 17 - 1968 - The Scaffold - Lily The Pink 1986 - Jackie Wilson - Reet Petite 2019 - LadBaby - I Love Sausage Rolls Vote 18 - 1987 - Pet Shop Boys - Always On My Mind 2005 - Shayne Ward - That's My Goal 2020 - LadBaby - Don't Stop Me Eatin'

We have also yet to have a chance to vote on The Scaffold, Jackie Wilson, The Pet Shop Boys and Shayne Ward, so I think there will still be two more votes for 4th December, with or without Rolf.

2nd December results Vote 13 - 757 votes cast 1964 - The Beatles - I Feel Fine - 29.7% (225 votes) 1982 - Renee and Renato - Save Your Love - 9.9% (75 votes) 2001 - Robbie Williams and Nicole Kidman - Something Stupid - 41.6% (315 votes) 2018 - LadBaby - We Built This City - 18.8% (142 votes) Vote 14 - 729 votes cast 1965 - The Beatles - Day Tripper - 21.5% (158 votes) 1983 - Flying Pickets - Only You - 20.6 % (150 votes) 2002 - Girls Aloud - Sound Of The Underground - 57.9% (422 votes) 3rd December voting open Vote 15 - 1966 - Tom Jones - Green Green Grass Of Home 1984 - Band Aid - Do They Know It's Christmas 2003 - Michael Andrew and Gary Jules - Mad World Vote 16 - 1967 - The Beatles - Hello Goodbye 1985 - Shakin' Stevens - Merry Christmas Everyone 2004 - Band Aid 20 - Do They Know It's Christmas

There are 69 xmas number ones, and we have already skipped 1991 as the OCC combined that with 1975, rather than using the other track on the AA. I strongly suspect that 1969's christmas number one will also be left out of the votes due to the singer in question's conviction, so that means there are probably 67 songs actually in the votes, so either one of the votes has to have 3 rather than 4, or else there has to be a duplication or wildcard. Of course we don't know whether they actually intended for it to be that particular vote that only had three, or whether they accidentally left Ladbaby off when they published it lol.

1st December Results Vote 11 - 507 votes 1962 - Elvis Presley - Return To Sender - 24.7 (125 votes) 1980 - St Winifred's School Choir - There's No One Quite Like Grandma - 13.8% (70 votes) 1999 - Westlife - I Have A Dream - 29.6% (150 votes) 2016 - Clean Bandit - Rockabye - 32% (162 votes) Vote 12 - 567 votes 1963 - The Beatles - I Want To Hold Your Hand - 22% (129 votes) 1981 - Human League - Don't You Want Me - 40.6% (230 votes) 2000 - Bob The Builder - Can We Fix It? - 12.9% (73 votes) 2017 - Ed Sheeran - Perfect - 23.8% (135 votes) 2nd December voting open Vote 13 - 1964 - The Beatles - I Feel Fine 1982 - Renee and Renato - Save Your Love 2001 - Robbie Williams and Nicole Kidman - Something Stupid 2018 - LadBaby - We Built This City Vote 14 - 1965 - The Beatles - Day Tripper 1983 - Flying Pickets - Only You 2002 - Girls Aloud - Sound Of The Underground

30th November results Vote 9 - 806 votes cast 1960 - Cliff Richard and The Shadows - I Love You - 3.25 (26 votes) 1978 - Boney M - Mary's Boy Child - Oh My Lord - 37.8 (305 votes) 1997 - Spice Girls - Too Much - 52.2 votes (421 votes) 2014 - Ben Haenow - Something I Need - 6.7% (54 votes) Vote 10 - 781 votes cast 1961 - Danny Williams - Moon River - 9.7 % (76 votes) 1979 - Pink Floyd - Another Brick In The Wall (Part 2) - 29.2 (228 votes) 1998 - Spice Girls - Goodbye - 55.7% (435 votes) 2015 - The Lewisham & Greenwich NHS Choir - A Bridge Over You - 5.4% (42 votes) 1st December voting still open Vote 11 - 1962 - Elvis Presley - Return To Sender 1980 - St Winifred's School Choir - There's No One Quite Like Grandma 1999 - Westlife - I Have A Dream 2016 - Clean Bandit - Rockabye Vote 12 - 1963 - The Beatles - I Want To Hold Your Hand 1981 - Human League - Don't You Want Me 2000 - Bob The Builder - Can We Fix It? 2017 - Ed Sheeran - Perfect

The 29th November results Vote 7 - 1508 votes cast 1958 - Conway Twitty - It's Only Make Believe - 2.9% (44 votes) 1976 - Johnny Mathis - When A Child Is Born - 18% (271 votes) 1995 - Michael Jackson - Earth Song - 51.7% (780 votes) 2012 - Justice Collective - He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother - 27.5 % (415 votes) Vote 8 - 1090 votes cast 1959 - Emile Ford and The Checkmates - What Do You Want To Make Those Eyes At Me For - 5.6% (61 votes) 1977 - Wings - Mull of Kintyre/Girls' School - 22% (240 votes) 1996 - Spice Girls - 2 Become 1 - 67.2% (732 votes) 2013 - Sam Bailey - Skyscraper - 5.1% (56 votes) The 30th November voting is now open Vote 9 - 1960 - Cliff Richard and The Shadows - I Love You 1978 - Boney M - Mary's Boy Child - Oh My Lord 1997 - Spice Girls - Too Much 2014 - Ben Haenow - Something I Need Vote 10 - 1961 - Danny Williams - Moon River 1979 - Pink Floyd - Another Brick In The Wall (Part 2) 1998 - Spice Girls - Goodbye 2015 - The Lewisham & Greenwich NHS Choir - A Bridge Over You

And here is the rankings so far, by both straight votes and percentage of the votes. By Straight Votes 959 – 2009 – Rage Against The Machine – Killing In The Name 606 – 2008 – Alexandra Burke - Hallelujah 463 – 1973 – Slade – Merry Xmas Everybody 446 – 1975/1991 – Queen – Bohemian Rhapsody 415 – 1992 – Whitney Houston – I Will Always Love You 404 – 1974 – Mud – Lonely This Christmas 388 – 1989 – Band Aid II – Do They Know It’s Christmas 340 – 2006 – Leona Lewis – A Moment Like This 299 – 1988 – Cliff Richard – Mistletoe And Wine 270 – 1994 – East 17 – Stay Another Day 225 – 1990 – Cliff Richard – Saviour’s Day 155 – 1957 – Harry Belafonte – Mary’s Boy Child 153 – 2010 – Matt Cardle – When We Collide 141 – 1993 – Mr Blobby – Mr Blobby 100 – 1971 – Benny Hill – Ernie The Fastest Milkman In The West 89 – 1972 – Little Jimmy Osmond – Long Haired Lover From Liverpool 74 – 1970 – Dave Edmunds Rockpile – I Hear You Knockin’ 74 – 2007 – Leon Jackson – When You Believe 50 – 1954 – Winifred Atwell – Let’s Have Another Party 47 – 1956 – Johnnie Ray – Just Walkin’ In The Rain 27 – 1953 – Frankie Laine – Answer Me 17 – 1952 – Al Martino – Here In My Heart 16 – 2011 – Military Wives/Gareth Malone – Wherever You Are 15 – 1955 – Dickie Valentine Christmas Alpahbet By Percentage of the Votes 65.6% - 1989 – Band Aid II – Do They Know It’s Christmas 62.5% - 2008 – Alexandra Burke – Hallelujah 54.2% - 1974 – Mud – Lonely This Christmas 51.8% - 2009 – Rage Against The Machine – Killing In The Name 50.3% - 1975/1991 – Queen – Bohemian Rhapsody 46% - 2006 – Leona Lewis – A Moment Like This 41% - 1988 – Cliff Richard – Mistletoe And Wine 30.4% - 1994 – East 17 – Stay Another Day 25% - 1973 – Slade – Merry Xmas Everybody 23.2% - 1990 – Cliff Richard – Saviour’s Day 22.4% - 1992 – Whitney Houston – I Will Always Love You 20.5% - 2010 – Matt Cardle – When We Collide 18.9% - 1993 – Mr Blobby – Mr Blobby 17.5% - 1957 – Harry Belafonte – Mary’s Boy Child 17% - 1971 – Benny Hill – Ernie The Fastest Milkman In The West 12.6% - 2007 – Leon Jackson – When You Believe 10.1% - 1970 – Dave Edmunds Rockpile – I Hear You Knockin’ 9.2% - 1972 – Little Jimmy Osmond – Long Haired Lover From Liverpool 6.3% - 1956 – Johnnie Ray – Just Walkin’ In The Rain 5.2% - 1954 – Winifred Atwell – Let’s Have Another Party 4.6% - 1953 – Frankie Laine – Answer Me 2.3% - 1952 – Al Martino – Here In My Heart 1.8% - 2011 – Military Wives/Gareth Malone – Wherever You Are 0.8% – 1955 – Dickie Valentine Christmas Alpahbet

The 28th November results Vote 5 - 745 votes cast 1956 - Johnnie Ray - Just Walkin' In The Rain - 6.3% (47 votes) 1974 - Mud - Lonely This Christmas - 54.2% (404 votes) 1993 - Mr Blobby - Mr Blobby - 18.9% (141 votes) 2010 - Matt Cardle - When We Collide - 20.5% (153 votes) Vote 6 - 887 votes cast 1957 - Harry Belafonte - Mary's Boy Child - 17.5% (155 votes) 1975/1991 - Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody - 50.3% (446 votes) 1994 - East 17 - Stay Another Day - 30.4% (270 votes) 2011 - Military Wives - Wherever You Are - 1.8% (16 votes) So a few firsts here. Before these two votes only the newest or second newest songs in any vote had won, so both polls mark the first time the second oldest song won. Also vote 6 is the first time the oldest song didn't come last, and the first time that the newest song did, with Military Wives polling less votes than everyone else so far other than Dickie Valentine. The 29th November voting is now open Vote 7 - 1958 - Conway Twitty - It's Only Make Believe 1976 - Johnny Mathis - When A Child Is Born 1995 - Michael Jackson - Earth Song 2012 - Justice Collective - He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother Vote 8 - 1959 - Emile Ford and The Checkmates - What Do You Want To Make Those Eyes At Me For 1977 - Wings - Mull of Kintyre/Girls' School 1996 - Spice Girls - 2 Become 1 2013 - Sam Bailey - Skyscraper

You'd have to ask the OCC. As far as I can see they seem to have started with 68 xmas number ones (with the 1991 instance of Bo Rhap being skipped), with the general idea of placing the groups by using four vertical columns of 17 consecutive xmas number ones. The first column thus starts with 1952 and presumably ends with 1968 and the second in fact begins with 1970, which suggests they are also skipping 1969 as you'd expect, and presumably ends with 1986. The third begins apparently with 1988 (begging the question of what will happen with 1987) and presumably ends with 2005, and the fourth begins with 2006 and presumably ends with two vacant spaces (one of which I'd guess will in fact have 1987 in it). 26th Nov - 1952, 1970, 1988, 2006 26th Nov - 1953, 1971, 1989, 2007 27th Nov - 1954, 1972, 1990, 2008 27th Nov - 1955, 1973, 1992, 2009 28th Nov - 1956, 1974, 1993, 2010 28th Nov - 1957, 1975, 1994, 2011 29th Nov – 1958, 1976, 1995, 2012 29th Nov – 1959, 1977, 1996, 2013 30th Nov – 1960, 1978, 1997, 2014 30th Nov – 1961, 1979, 1998, 2015 1st Dec – 1962, 1980, 1999, 2016 1st Dec – 1963, 1981, 2000, 2017 2nd Dec – 1964, 1982, 2001, 2018 2nd Dec – 1965, 1983, 2002, 2019 3rd Dec – 1966, 1984, 2003, 2020 3rd Dec – 1967, 1985, 2004, ____ 4th Dec – 1968, 1986, 2005, ____ Or are they also going to have 4th Dec - 1969, 1987, ____ , ____ ?

Unfortunately I missed the first two votes myself, and I don't honestly know which one I would have gone with for Vote 1, but either Dave or Cliff. For Vote 2 it would definitely have been Benny Hill for me. And the ones I actually did vote for were Vote 3 - Little Jimmy Osmond (but for me that's probably the poorest group so far) Vote 4 - Slade (I loved the fact that the Rage campaign got xmas number one, probably my favourite xmas chart battle, but the song itself isn't good enough to beat Slade or Whitney in my opinion) Vote 5 - Mr Blobby (tough one between Mud and Mr Blobby, but Mr Blobby was the christmas chart race that got 10 year old me interested in the xmas charts in the first place, and is a much more positive song) Vote 6 - Queen (though I felt bad for East 17 being in that group, as they may well have got my vote in a lot of other possible groupings)

I've been trying to figure out the rest of the voting groups for the first round and have come up with this: 29th Nov – 1958, 1976, 1995, 2012 29th Nov – 1959, 1977, 1996, 2013 30th Nov – 1960, 1978, 1997, 2014 30th Nov – 1961, 1979, 1998, 2015 1st Dec – 1962, 1980, 1999, 2016 1st Dec – 1963, 1981, 2000, 2017 2nd Dec – 1964, 1982, 2001, 2018 2nd Dec – 1965, 1983, 2002, 2019 3rd Dec – 1966, 1984, 2003, 2020 3rd Dec – 1967, 1985, 2004 4th Dec – 1968, 1986, 2005 4th Dec – 1969, 1987 So I'm not entirely sure what the OCC's actual plan is. I would have thought that 1969's xmas number one will not be in the vote, so perhaps the 1987 xmas number one will be slotted on the end of one of the two above it.

The 27th November voting results: Vote 3 - 970 votes cast 1954 - Winifred Atwell - Let's Have Another Party - 5.2% (50 votes) 1972 - Little Jimmy Osmond - Long Haired Lover From Liverpool - 9.2% (89 votes) 1990 - Cliff Richard - Saviour's Day - 23.2% (225 votes) 2008 - Alexandra Burke - Hallelujah - 62.5% (606 votes) Vote 4 - 1851 votes cast 1955 - Dickie Valentine - Christmas Alphabet - 0.8% (15 votes) 1973 - Slade - Merry Xmas Everybody - 25% (463 votes) 1992 - Whitney Houston - I Will Always Love You - 22.4% (415 votes) 2009 - Rage Against The Machine - Killing In The Name - 51.8% (959 votes) [NB I'm aware that the number of votes for each song add up to one more than the total number of votes, but I can't quite resolve this. Twitter only gives the percentages for each candidate in the vote) It's worth pointing out that in three of the four results so far the newest song won, with only Leon Jackson being unable to benefit from the advantage of youth, losing out to Band Aid II of all things, although even Benny Hill polled better than Leon. The next two votes may well see the oldest winners so far. The 28th November voting is currently open Vote 5 - 1956 - Johnnie Ray - Just Walkin' In The Rain 1974 - Mud - Lonely This Christmas 1993 - Mr Blobby - Mr Blobby 2010 - Matt Cardle - When We Collide Vote 6 - 1957 - Harry Belafonte - Mary's Boy Child 1975/1991 - Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody 1994 - East 17 - Stay Another Day 2011 - Military Wives - Wherever You Are

I thought I'd start a thread about this as I can't see anyone talking about this here yet. On the 26th November the OCC began a series of Twitter votes to decide the UK's favourite xmas number one, with the grand final on 16th December. The votes start at 12 noon every day, and so far in the first round it looks like there will be two sets of 4 songs competing each day, though they haven't said how many will go through from each one. The 26th November's results are as follows (I've calcuated the total votes in brackets myself, though the exact percentages Twitter gives don't tend to yield whole numbers) Vote 1 - 730 votes cast 1952 - Al Martino - Here In My Heart - 2.3% (17 votes) 1970 - Dave Edmunds - I Hear You Knockin' - 10.1% (74 votes) 1988 - Cliff Richard - Mistletoe and Wine - 41% (299 votes) 2006 - Leona Lewis - A Moment Like This - 46% (340 votes) Vote 2 - 589 votes cast 1953 - Frankie Laine - Answer Me - 4.6% (27 votes) 1971 - Benny Hill - Ernie The Fastest Milkman In The West - 17% (100 votes) 1989 - Band Aid II - Do They Know It's Christmas - 65.6% (388 votes) 2007 - Leon Jackson - When You Believe 12.6% (74 votes) The 27th November voting is currently still open Vote 3 - 1954 - Winifred Atwell - Let's Have Another Party 1972 - Little Jimmy Osmond - Long Haired Lover From Liverpool 1990 - Cliff Richard - Saviour's Day 2008 - Alexandra Burke - Hallelujah Vote 4 - 1955 - Dickie Valentine - Christmas Alphabet 1973 - Slade - Merry Xmas Everybody 1992 - Whitney Houston - I Will Always Love You 2009 - Rage Against The Machine - Killing In The Name So far both of those polls have already gained more total votes than the previous two, and so far Rage Against The Machine is absolutely slaying Slade, whilst I expect most Buzzjackers will say a hallelujah when they learn that Alexandra Burke is currently well ahead of her three competitors. One thing I have noticed is that they have skipped 1991, rather than use These Are The Days Of Our Lives, which leaves only 68 number ones, a number divisible by 4, implying that will NOT be skipping over the 1969 xmas number one, despite who it is by.

In the case of the 1987 one there wasn't a missed broadcast though, it was just that the source chart being used skipped forward a week during October (from that point playing the incoming chart just announced, rather than the outgoing one that was just about to be out of date, as had previously been the case), leaving one week's chart unused by the Sunday chart show, despite there not being Sunday that had no chart show broadcast. The 1988 xmas chart was announced and broadcast on Boxing Day Monday, with the industry still agreeing to consider it as the xams chart despite being announced afterwards. This was done to avoid having to calculate, distribute and broadcast e a new chart on a day that was both Christmas Day AND a Sunday (when Sunday working was still unsual outside of the most essential roles, and either Christmas Day or Sunday would have attracted at least double time on their own, and both together would have probably led to at least triple time being paid out to those who worked it). The chart for New Year's week was often times either not broadcast at all, or run down very quickly in passing, to allow for a chart of the year to be broadcast in the relevant Sunday slot instead (though other times they have been separate shows from the weekly chart show).

Excuse the late reply, but I only just saw this thread when searching for something else. The spreadsheet idea is a good one, but bear in mind that before 1969 there was no official chart and that the ones that were subsequently used by Guinness (and then others) afterwards (NME 1952-1960 and Record Retailer 19660-1969) were just one of multiple magazine charts available in those days, which didn't even all get compiled on the same day or used the same sales periods to each other. The BBC would average all (or as many as they could get hold of in time) of the charts to create their own chart which didn't necessarily match any of the others, so for any line in the spreadsheet before February 1969 the chart being unveiled by the named chart show presenter would have a been a different one to the 'official' one in the books and databases you would probably be referring to for the other statistics on that line. As far as identifying who each week's chart show presenter was, there is a thread that sm1ffj and I worked on that attempted just that for the entire run of the show, which you could use, and I which I occasionally spend time searching for and then updating. Searching for it is tricky as the search engine on here doesn't like words of 5 or less letters, so whenever I want to find it I use the tactic of searching for a very obscure guest presenter, but then first have to use genome to establish who that is, as he is so osbcure that I never remember his name (Clive Warren in case anyone is wondering). Even then the correct thread was somehow on the second page of search results when I did this just now, even though Clive Warren isn't someone that is likely to be written about all that often on this forum. The link for that thread is: http://www.buzzjack.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=159682

Funnily enough I always go through a cycle of hearing it and thereby knowing it, then a while later (usually when seing it somewhere within a chart) forgetting what it sounds like and having to stream it to find out, only to then think 'duh, of course it's that song'. If only they had called it 'blinded by the lights', which is the phrase they actually use in the song, then it would probably be enough of a memory jogger for me to the be able to recall the song from its title without having to stream it for the nth time to yet again remind myself what the song sounds like. Perhaps that even explains how it continues to chart, if it somehow causes amnesia and the continued streaming is just people repeatedly forgetting the song and wanting to be reminded of it again.