Shane MacGowan’s wife Victoria responds to Wham! scoring Christmas No 1

Sign up to Roisin O’Connor’s free weekly newsletter Now Hear This for the inside track on all things music Get our Now Hear This email for free Get our Now Hear This email for free SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. MacGowan’s band were in contention for the top of the charts with their Kirsty MacColl collaboration, “Fairytale of New York”, up against Wham!’s “Last Christmas” and Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You”. Fans of The Pogues were rooting for “Fairytale of New York” following MacGowan’s death aged 65 in November, with his wife, Irish author and journalist Victoria Mary Clarke, throwing her support behind the campaign. Meanwhile, “Fairytale of New York” arrived at No 6 in the Christmas 2023 UK singles chart, while Eurovision Sam Ryder played second with his new single, “You’re Christmas to Me”. Enjoy unlimited access to 100 million ad-free songs and podcasts with Amazon Music Sign up now for a 4 month free trial Sign up Enjoy unlimited access to 100 million ad-free songs and podcasts with Amazon Music Sign up now for a 4 month free trial Sign up Reacting to the news on Friday 22 December, Ridgley said in a statement: “Last Christmas has finally ascended to the much-cherished and sought-after Official Christmas number one, which was always the main goal.