Sam Ryder praises ‘unstoppable force’ of Wham in heartfelt video after losing Christmas No 1 race

Sam Ryder has praised the “unstoppable force” of Wham!’s “Last Christmas” after losing to the 1984 hit in this year’s “tight” race for Christmas No 1.

The British singer, who took the UK to second place at Eurovision in 2022, was a close contender for this year’s Christmas No 1 spot with his song “You’re Christmas To Me”.

However, Friday’s (22 December) chart revealed that this year’s Christmas No 1 had been taken by Wham! with their inescapable Eighties hit “Last Christmas”. While the track reached No 2 on its first release and topped the charts for the first time in 2021, this marked the first time the song has been the Christmas No 1.

In a video shared to his Instagram on Friday evening, Ryder described his “boundless gratitude” to have taken the No 2 spot.

“If you’ve just heard the news, I can let you know with a bursting heart of gratitude that we are the UK’s Christmas No 2,” Ryder told the camera, before praising Andrew Ridgeley and “the whole Wham! team”.

“Just absolutely unstoppable force, and rightly so,” he said. “They are icons, they are legends. And you know what? It feels great to be the filling in a Wham! and Mariah [Carey] sandwich. I can tell you that, for sure.”

Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” was No 3 in the charts, with festive songs by Ed Sheeran and Elton John, The Pogues and Kirsty MacColl, Brenda Lee, Michael Buble and Shakin’ Stevens all in the Top 10.

Ryder continued: “Number two, it’s always been a magic number and that won’t change,” as he thanked his fans for their support “and the belief and the faith”.

“This was a position that, I can’t explain or stress enough, it was so unexpected for us to be in,” he said. “I think you’ve got a responsibility as an artist in the running for a Christmas No 1. You’ve gotta create a race out of it. We threw everything we possibly could at trying to get that No 1 spot.

“And you know why? Because we were inspired by the legends that we were rubbing shoulders with. Mariah, Wham!: these artists didn’t become icons by not giving it everything in their career. So we were inspired and followed in their blazingly bright footsteps.”

Ryder then praised Ridgeley again, saying: “I’m sure that George is up there, smiling his head off and continuing to inspire generations of singers to come, me included. I’m stoked. What a day. Blessed!”

He then cheekily added that “maybe it’s not over”, as “next week, we’ll be back, we’ll be giving it everything again”. In the meantime, however, Ryder said he was going to “chill” and watch Downton Abbey.

In the comments beneath Ryder’s video, his fans and famous friends alike were quick to praise the singer for his hard work.

“That is an epic Christmas sandwich to be in my friend! Congratulations!” wrote Ted Lasso star Hannah Waddingham, while Rylan added: “So proud of you.”

“Like in Eurovision, you were number two there but we all know you were really number one. Thank you for being the super human being you are and have a wonderful Christmas,” one fan wrote.

In another top comment, however, one fan theorised that “You’re Christmas To Me” would have had a better shot at the top spot if it had been released across all streaming platforms.

Ryder’s success in the Christmas charts is all the more impressive as the single was only available to stream on Amazon Music and YouTube, due to its release as an Amazon exclusive for the soundtrack of the Prime Video festive film Your Christmas or Mine 2.

“It’s a shame it was an Amazon exclusive because you would have 1000 per cent got the number one spot if it was available on all platforms! It’s an amazing song and it’ll definitely be played for years and years to come every Christmas (or every day in my son’s case),” the commenter wrote.