20 December 2022
Newsdesk
Wham! and Mariah Carey begin to close the gap on LadBaby for 2022's Christmas Number 1.
According to the latest Official Charts Company data unveiled this morning, George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley's festive classic Last Christmas has narrowed the gap by more than 3,000 units overnight in the race to become the UK's Official Christmas Number 1 2022.
As it stands, a first ever Christmas Number 1 single for Wham! could feasibly be in sight if their current streaming momentum holds up. Last Christmas is now just 13,000 chart units behind LadBaby's Food Aid, having added a further 8,500 units overnight to LadBaby's 5,100. Plus, with more streaming data to arrive later this week that could propel the duo even closer, it's shaping up to be an exciting festive chart battle.
Queen of Christmas Mariah Carey also remains firmly in with a shot at her first Christmas Number 1 victory, currently in third place, with All I Want For Christmas Is You just a little over 600 units behind Wham!
This means that while LadBaby are still in the lead for a record-breaking fifth consecutive Official Christmas Number 1 right now, that might all change as the race ticks on. Could a midweek upset be on its way?
In fourth place is Merry Christmas by Ed Sheeran and Elton John (4).
Still growing, unlikely contender Stormzy is also looking to break into the Top 5 with the tender ballad Firebabe (5), while RAYE's experimental hit Escapism. begins to claw its way back up the chart this week, up one on yesterday (6) and Central Cee's surprise new track Let It Go seeks to debut just outside the Top 10 (11).
Further down the chart, The K**ts' anarchic F*ck The Tories does drop down since yesterday's Official Chart First Look, but is still eyeing a Top 20 debut (19), while YouTube group Sidemen shouldn't be discounted yet either, rising a further six places overnight with their viral single Christmas Drillings (28).
With four full days of tracking left until the Christmas Number 1 is decided, it's far from over yet. Keep your eyes peeled on OfficialCharts.com and our socials for more updates and exclusives this week, and remember that the most important Number 1 of the year is ultimately decided by you - so keep streaming, buying and downloading your favourite singles up until 23.59pm Thursday to make your vote count.
