The definitive answer to the Fairytale of New York lyric controversy

Martin Belam  by , November 19, 2020

In 1987, “Fairytale of New York” was beaten to Xmas #1 by Pet Shop Boys with “Always On My Mind”. This was the correct verdict by the British record buying public. Shane MacGowan is reported to have said of this “We were beaten by two queens and a drum machine”. He can fuck right off.

Martin Belam  by Martin Belam, November 19, 2020
I do live blogging, news stories and quizzes at the Guardian, and help cover Eurovision and Doctor Who for them too. As a journalist and designer I’ve spent over twenty years building digital products for the likes of Sony, the Guardian, the BBC, the Natural History Museum, Arts Council England and Reach (formerly Trinity Mirror). You can contact me at martin.belam@theguardian.com. Sign up to get my blog posts sent to you via email.