Fairytale of New York undergoing rewrites and aborted attempts at recording, and losing its original female vocalist along the way, before finally being completed in August 1987. Although the single never reached the coveted UK Christmas number one, being kept at number two on its original release in 1987 by the Pet Shop Boys' cover version of "Always on My Mind", it has proved enduringly popular with both music critics and the public: to date the song has reached the UK Top 20 on fifteen separate occasions since its original release in 1987, including every year since 2005, and was certified double platinum in
2007 in British music charts to number one on downloads but only number four (behind Eva Cassidy & Katie Melua, Leona Lewis & Soulja Boy Tell 'Em) with "All I Want for Christmas Is You" in the combined chart. The Pogues also charted well, getting to number eight during their third week in the chart (on downloads alone) with Fairytale of New York. Wham!, Wizzard, Andy Williams, Slade, Shakin' Stevens, Band Aid, Chris Rea and John Lennon also provided a festive feel to the top 40. T2 featuring Jodie Aysha slipped to number nine after two weeks at number two. On the 'Christmas Chart', Kylie