Anti-Starmer protest and charity song Freezing this Christmas hit #1 on the UK's sales and download charts for Christmas week, but got next to no airplay after the state-owned BBC refused to play it.
Christmas number one: Freezing This Christmas - who are Sir Starmer and the Granny Harmers? | National World | Tom Morton:
December 20, 2024 - "'Freezing This Christmas' is a take-off of the crooning Mud perennial Lonely This Christmas - but unlike similar parodies its aim is not to raise a smile but to stoke anger. The fictional band Sir Starmer and the Granny Harmers are looking to highlight the plight of pensioners. It was written as a protest against the new Labour government’s decision to scrap the winter fuel allowance. So far 1.6m people have watched the video on YouTube - and the song is, according to bookmaker William Hill, in the running to be Christmas number one.
"The lyrics were drafted by33-year-old freelance writer Chris Middleton from Newcastle. He told the Daily Telegraph: ... 'I saw something on [X] a couple of months ago about trying to do a Christmas song for pensioners and the hook of the chorus just came to me. Lonely This Christmas is my favourite Christmas song so that’s probably why'.... The song has an accompanying JustGiving fundraising page, which is raising money for Age UK. After setting a target of £5,000, so far it has raised more than £35,000 for the charity, and donations can be made here.
The singer is Dean Ager, 51, from Worthing, who usually impersonates Frank Sinatra and Michael Buble.... As well as hundreds of thousands of streams on YouTube, Freezing This Christmas has topped the Apple iTunes download chart - but so far the BBC has not played it."
Freezing This Christmas racks up just over 14,000 sales in a few weeks but is pipped to top slot by Wham! | The Telegraph | Craig Simpson:
December 20, 2024 - "An anti-Keir Starmer protest song has topped the downloads and sales charts but missed out on the Christmas No 1 slot. Freezing This Christmas, by the parody act Sir Starmer and The Granny Harmers, ... was embraced by the public and reached No 1 in both the Official Download Chart and the Official Sales Chart, racking up just over 14,000 sales in a matter of weeks.
"However, Wham!’s 1984 hit Last Christmas was named Christmas No 1, sealing the top spot for the second year in a row – a first for the charts. The Official Singles Chart is calculated based on all audio, video, streaming, download and physical sales. Freezing This Christmas enjoyed a surge in download sales, but these were not enough to compete with the more than 12 million streams garnered by Last Christmas.
"Despite receiving no radio play, as the BBC refused to give the anti-Labour song air time, Freezing This Christmas finished at number 37 in the Official Singles Chart.
"The refusal to play the track continued even after this final chart position was announced, with the BBC’s Official Chart show Radio cutting the song from its countdown of the Christmas Top 40. Presenter Jack Saunders played both number 38 and 36, but omitted Freezing This Christmas at number 37."
Freezing This Christmas OFFICIAL VIDEO by Sir Starmer and the Granny Harmers (Parody of Mud) | Sir Starmer and the Granny Harmers | December 1, 2024:
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