The X Factor number one single. It’s as Christmassy as turkey and tinsel, right?
No, of course it’s not. It hasn’t even been a decade since Shayne Ward grabbed the talent show’s first festive number one back in 2005. And since then only six of the UK’s nine Christmas number ones singles have been a Cowell creation.
What’s more, the public’s desire to own a Christmas X Factor “hit” seems to have dwindled dramatically – as this handy graph charting Christmas-week sales shows.
Based on these figures, we’ve cooked up a few bits of advice for Mr Haenow.
1. Dissuade anyone from releasing a charity single – especially as a collective super-group. Fortunately the sting seems to have already been taken out of Band Aid 30′s tail.
2. Stick with a rousing cover of a rock ballad. OneRepublic’s Something I Need should give Ben a head start, but it’s hardly Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah…
3. Rely on luck rather than raw sales stats. That seems to be how Leon Jackson and Sam Bailey did it.
4. Really, he should have done all this a few years back. Frankly, the public haven’t looked this apathetic since, well… Steve Brookstein.
5. Remember that an X Factor win isn’t (always) just for Christmas. Little Mix barely made 100,000 sales and look at them now…
Having said all that, Ben should be chuffed he’s beaten off all the other contestants – including bookies’ favourite Fleur East. You know what they say: “Without that X Factor win, you’re nothing.”
At least that’s what Olly Murs, JLS, Ella Henderson and some guy called Harry Styles told us.
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