2025 ends under a Christmas glass bell: Christmas by Michael Bublé returns to the top of the British Official Albums Chart, achieving the final number one of the year.
It is the eighth non-consecutive week at the top for the album, a fact that not only certifies its longevity, but definitively seals Bublé as the seasonal ruler of a sound imagery that resists time and the calendar. Not surprisingly, 2025 opened with Christmas in first place and closes in the same way: an eternal return, more than a simple recurrence.
The festive period, as we know, shuffles the cards and brings classics and archives to the surface. As The Christmas Song by Nat King Cole makes a dizzying leap of 141 places to number 28, followed by Christmas Classics by Bing Crosby, which rises 66 places to 30th.
On the long wave of Christmas success, Kylie Minogue sees Kylie Christmas (Fully Wrapped) return to the Top 20, climbing up to position 20 after achieving Christmas Number 1 with XMAS. An example of how pop, when handled with skill, still knows how to dialogue with ritual.
SINGLES
The WHAM! they take back the last throne of the year. Last Christmas returns to Number 1 on the British Official Singles Chart, signing the single that closes 2025 at the top and giving George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley their twelfth non-consecutive week at the summit. A late but symbolic victory: after being ousted last week by Kylie Minogue's XMASthe song returns with the quiet strength of the classics that know no obsolescence.
Behind him, Mariah Carey remains firmly at Number 2 with All I Want for Christmas Is You, while Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree by Brenda Lee reaches a new peak at Number 3, sealing a surprisingly vital 2025 for the 1962 classic, now definitively emancipated from the museum of nostalgia.
Instead it drops to Number 4 XMAS by Kylie Minogue, This year's official Christmas Number 1, while Fairytale of New York by The Pogues with Kirsty MacColl returns to the Top 5, climbing up to position 5: a collective ritual that, year after year, continues to speak with a rough and irreducible voice.
The ranking also records a moment of reflection. After the news of the passing of Chris Rea, Driving Home for Christmas it jumps 20 positions and re-enters the Top 10 at Number 10, confirming how some songs function as emotional devices even before being hits.
VINYLS
Olivia Dean confirms the solidity of The Art of Lovingwhich ends the year dominating the Official Albums Vinyl Chart.
