For millions of music fans in the United Kingdom, the race for the Christmas number one single is as much a part of the holiday season as twinkling lights and mince pies. This year, in a closely fought contest that saw festive titans jostling for the crown, Kylie Minogue emerged triumphant, making history in the process.
On December 19, 2025, the Official Charts Company announced that Kylie Minogue’s exuberant single “XMAS” had clinched the coveted Christmas number one spot. The victory was no small feat: Minogue’s win dethroned Wham!’s “Last Christmas,” which had held the top position for the previous two years, and saw off fierce competition from perennial holiday favorites like Mariah Carey and Brenda Lee. According to the BBC, the competition was neck and neck, with just 10,000 copies separating the top five songs at one point during the week.
“It’s hard to put into words how special this feels. Being Christmas number one really is the most wonderful gift!” Minogue told the Official Charts Company, her voice brimming with gratitude. “I’m so thankful to everyone who’s been listening and sharing the love and I’m wishing you all a very Merry Christmas!”
Minogue’s “XMAS” is a jaunty, infectious anthem about classic holiday themes—presents under the tree, snow, and the thrill of a seasonal romance. The track appears on a newly expanded edition of her 2015 album Kylie Christmas, released exclusively through Amazon Music. This exclusivity gave her a unique edge, as the song was prominently featured on Amazon’s Christmas playlist, though it was unavailable on other major streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music. Nevertheless, the combination of Amazon and YouTube plays, alongside limited edition vinyl and CD singles, propelled her to the top of the charts.
It’s a momentous achievement for the Australian pop icon. Not only does “XMAS” mark Minogue’s first UK Christmas number one as a solo artist, but it also makes her the first female artist to top the UK singles chart in four different decades—the 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, and now the 2020s. This places her in rarefied company, joining the likes of Elton John, Elvis, and Queen. Only Cliff Richard has managed to notch up number ones across five decades, according to Billboard.
The win also marks Minogue’s eighth UK number one overall, adding to a glittering list of chart-toppers that began with “I Should Be So Lucky” in 1988. Her previous number ones include “Especially For You” (with Jason Donovan), “Hand On Your Heart,” “Tears On My Pillow,” “Spinning Around,” “Can’t Get You Out Of My Head,” and “Slow.” As The Independent noted, this week was Minogue’s biggest for UK sales and streams in 23 years, since the heyday of her 2002 hit “Love At First Sight.”
Martin Talbot, chief executive of the Official Charts Company, praised the pop star’s determined campaign. “Kylie really, really targeted this particular race. Her record label pulled out all the stops. When you have a superstar of her status really going for it, she’s always going to be in with a chance.” He added, “Congratulations to Kylie – what an amazing achievement by our adopted national treasure. Now, with what feels like a genuine festive banger, she has claimed the Christmas number one 2025. And it already feels as if ‘XMAS’ has a genuine chance of becoming one of the nation’s favourite, recurrent, festive classics, returning year after year. Maybe, finally, Mariah has a challenger for her crown—Kylie, the new queen of Christmas?”
Minogue’s victory is also notable in a broader context. She is the first solo female artist in 12 years to land the Christmas number one, following Sam Bailey’s “Skyscraper” in 2013. Few international female solo artists have achieved the feat: Trinidad-born Winifred Atwell did so in 1954, and Whitney Houston in 1992. The last Australian to top the Christmas chart was Nicole Kidman, who duetted with Robbie Williams on “Somethin’ Stupid” in 2001.
“XMAS” is more than just a song—it’s an event. The music video features Minogue teaching a festive dance to a group of children and adults, with a surprise cameo from ABBA’s Bjorn Ulvaeus. The track’s infectious spirit and Minogue’s enduring appeal have struck a chord with listeners, helping her album Kylie Christmas also reach number one on the Official Albums Chart the previous week.
Meanwhile, Wham!’s “Last Christmas” had been hoping for a record-breaking third consecutive Christmas number one. The song, originally released in 1984, famously missed out on the top spot that year due to Band Aid’s “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” but finally achieved number one in 2023 and repeated the feat in 2024. According to BBC Radio 1’s Jack Saunders, the song’s enduring popularity comes from its universal message: “It’s family coming together, it’s reigniting friendships, it’s community. When you hear Wham! on the radio, you think, oh yeah we are all in this together, this is our song.” This year, “Last Christmas” was not only the UK runner-up but also topped Billboard’s global 200 for the first time, making it the number one song worldwide.
The rest of this year’s Christmas top five read like a who’s who of festive legends: Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” landed at number three, Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree” at number four, and “Lullaby” by Together For Palestine at number five. The latter, a charity single raising funds for urgent humanitarian care in Gaza, is based on a traditional Palestinian folk song and features new lyrics by Peter Gabriel, with performances from Palestinian and British artists. Nai Barghouti, who features on the track, told the BBC, “To me, the Lullaby will always be number one. I am beyond proud of and humbled by the overwhelming support that we have received globally. Thank you to each and every one of you.”
As for Minogue, after a whirlwind year that included a massive 66-date Tension World Tour, she’s planning a low-key Christmas back home in Australia. Her holiday plans? “Obsessing over a jigsaw” with her family, watching the Boxing Day cricket Test match between Australia and England, and quietly relishing her historic win. “We’re not long-term puzzlers, but somehow a jigsaw puzzle was on the end of the dining table in the family house last Christmas,” she explained to the BBC. “So all Christmas, you’d float past and, if someone else was working on it, you’d be like, ‘Is now the right time? Are we on the same page? Should we work on separate zones?’”
With her place in the record books secured and a new generation of fans singing along, Kylie Minogue’s “XMAS” looks set to become a fixture of the UK’s festive soundtrack for years to come. For now, she’s content to celebrate quietly, savoring the most wonderful gift of all—a Christmas number one.
