20 December 1963 Uh-oh. Here's Cliff with his first Irish Christmas number one. Thankfully, 'Don't Talk To Him' isn't his latter-day Jesus-based creepery like 'Mistletoe And Wine' but instead the unlikely tale of a male hater fibbing to Cliff's girl that he's playing the field by "walking round with Sue and Jean". Listen up, haters: … Continue reading Cliff Richard and The Shadows – ‘Don’t Talk To Him’ →

14 December 1962 Elvis again, with a landmark Irish chart-topper again: 'Return To Sender' is Ireland's first official Christmas number one. And if you think that doesn't sound too festive, return to sender is what I do with your Christmas cards. (Also, there's an Elves Presley joke in there somewhere.) Anyway, as with 'She's Not … Continue reading Elvis Presley – ‘Return To Sender’ →

20 December 2007 The 2007 series of The X Factor wasn't a vintage year: no dazzling winner like Leona Lewis, no breakout finalist like One Direction or Olly Murs, not even a people's leftfield favourite like Jedward. Small-boyish Leon from Scotland beat big-boyish Rhydian from Wales, the two of them essentially distinguishable only by the … Continue reading Leon Jackson – ‘When You Believe’ →

21 December 2006 Here's another example of British TV dominating Ireland's pop-cultural marketplace: the X Factor winner's single was now as much an automatic Irish chart event as a UK one. And lest you think this was all just enthusiastic Irish boyband balladry fans lapping up the Irish boyband balladry style whatever the source, the … Continue reading Leona Lewis – ‘A Moment Like This’ →

22 December 2005 Ireland's 2005 Christmas chart-topper was the fifth Irish number one to either feature or mention Roy Keane. Not since the 1979 visit of Pope John Paul II (with only three number ones) had a well-known personality so dominated our pop-cultural discourse. Two of those Roy-related number ones were Irish World Cup squad … Continue reading Mario Rosenstock – ‘Leave Right Now’ →

15 December 2005 I can't quite recall the circumstances in which the unknown Nizlopi's JCB song rode a swell of Internet goodwill to top the UK and then the Irish charts. It being at Christmas, I suspect there was something to do with Britain's strange new tradition of watching The X Factor in droves all … Continue reading Nizlopi – ‘JCB Song’ →

2 December 2004 Here's a sobering thought: at Christmas 2024 we're due a Band Aid 40. Who'll be on it? Who'll sing Bono's Line and why will it be Bono? There's no need to be afraid - right? In the meantime, here's the class of 2004 taking their eyes-closed, face-scrunched, hands-on-the-headphones turn at charity Yuletide … Continue reading Band Aid 20 – ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’ →

20 December 2003 The male TV talent show stars of 2002-03—Will Young and Gareth Gates in the UK, Mickey Joe Harte and Simon Casey here in Ireland—were a homogenous bunch: mild-mannered, boyish, with similar spiky haircuts and blazer-over-bootcut-jeans dress sense. If that profile sounds familiar, then yes, they were a sort of applied Westlife - … Continue reading Will Young – ‘Leave Right Now’ →

7 December 2002 'Lose Yourself' is Eminem's second Irish Christmas number one in just three years. I like to think of nostalgic Irish families tucking into Christmas dinner, then gathering around the festive fireplace, all to the seasonal good cheer of this and 'Stan' plus a few slur-laden bars of 'Fairytale Of New York'. Peace … Continue reading Eminem – ‘Lose Yourself’ →

8 December 2001 Fans of Titanic the movie may have mixed emotions at Kate Winslet singing "What if I had never let you go?" If you'd made room on the raft, Kate, there'd have been no need to let go! Leonardo DiCaprio wouldn't still be at the bottom of the north Atlantic in icicle form … Continue reading Kate Winslet – ‘What If’ →