Ed Sheeran achieves ‘Perfect’ end to big year with Christmas number one
Ed Sheeran has had a careerdefining year and has ended it by landing the Christmas number one single.
The 26-year-old’s song Perfect has retained its place at the top of the charts, ending his year with a festive flourish.
The British singer-songwriter fended off competition from Eminem with River, on which Sheeran also appears, and Wham! classic Last Christmas in the battle for the accolade.
In a message to his fans, Sheeran told Officialcharts.com: “Thank you very much for making Perfect Christmas number one.
“This is an actual dream come true and I’m very proud and happy. Thank you so much and have a very Merry Christmas, happy holidays and a happy new year.”
In recent weeks, Sheeran’s Perfect has been given a new lease of life as he released new versions with Beyonce and classical singer Andrea Bocelli.
According to the Official Charts Company, the song acquired combined sales of 85,000 across downloads and streams in the past seven days.
The track has now also been certified double platinum by the BPI, having achieved 1.23 million combined UK sales to date.
Eminem’s River has finished the week at number two. Last Christmas is at number three following a social media campaign to get the beloved hit to the top spot in honour of the late George Michael.
Mariah Carey’s festive hit All I Want For Christmas Is You is at number four, and Rita Ora is at number five.
While Eminem did not manage to score the Christmas number one single, the US rapper did top the album charts with his new release Revival. He booted Sheeran’s Divide from the number one spot, having achieved combined sales of 132,000.
Elsewhere on the Christmas charts, The Pogues’ Fairytale of New York featuring Kirsty Maccoll is at number seven, marking the first time the beloved song has been in the top 10 in a decade.
In total, 16 of the top 40 singles have a Christmas theme – more than in any other year.