{"id":9289,"date":"2018-07-20T14:41:31","date_gmt":"2018-07-20T13:41:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/192.168.3.178\/?p=9289"},"modified":"2020-06-11T16:49:53","modified_gmt":"2020-06-11T15:49:53","slug":"flashback-friday-best-selling-british-singles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.musicmagpie.co.uk\/blog\/2018\/07\/20\/flashback-friday-best-selling-british-singles\/","title":{"rendered":"Flashback Friday: Best-selling British singles"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The turn of the millennium saw the rise of talent shows on TV, spurring a number of short lived superstars but also a few gems who have stuck around longer than the festive period. The 2000\u2019s produced some huge hits \u201d\u201c some much better than others!<\/p>\n<p>Prepare for a few \u201d\u02dcwhat were you thinking?\u2019 moments as we look at the best-selling singles in the UK from British artists in the noughties!<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/dQOTDrzHSkU\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>2000<\/h3>\n<p><strong><em>Can We Fix It?<\/em> &#8211; Bob the Builder<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Yep, you are absolutely reading that right. The cartoon handyman <em>Bob the Builder<\/em> gave us the best-selling single of the year in 2000. It was a pretty catchy theme song, and the creators of the TV show rode that gravy train all the way to the top of the charts. It famously beat out Westlife for Christmas number one too. The noughties were weird, weren\u2019t they?<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/t8dZgf6uBOU\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>2001<\/h3>\n<p><strong><em>Pure and Simple<\/em> &#8211; Hear&#8217;Say<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The original group put together on a talent show \u201d\u201c many moons before your One Directions and Little Mixes \u201d\u201c Hear\u2019Say\u2019s debut single shifted more than half a million copies in its first week. At the time, it was the fastest selling single in the UK. It\u2019s the seventh biggest-selling debut single of the 21<sup>st<\/sup> century in the UK, but the dizzying heights of fame weren\u2019t to last for the five-piece as they split up a year later.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Bc-sq7cJGho\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>2002<\/h3>\n<p><strong><em>Evergreen<\/em> &#8211; Will Young<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>Evergreen<\/em> was originally sung by Irish boyband Westlife, but it was chosen as the winner\u2019s single of the first season of Pop Idol. Will Young was crowned the rightful winner after a battle against finalists Darius Danesh and Gareth Gates. <em>Evergreen<\/em> went straight to number one, staying at the top for three weeks and was the fastest-selling debut in UK chart history. Young\u2019s single was knocked off the top spot by Gareth Gates\u2019s debut single\u00a0<em>Unchained Melody<\/em> and the rivalry lived on.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/LDgs7ERjC7A\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>2003<\/h3>\n<p><strong><em>Spirit in the Sky<\/em> &#8211; Gareth Gates featuring The Kumars<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>Spirit in the Sky<\/em> was originally released in 1969 but was covered by <em>Pop Idol<\/em> startlet Gareth Gates in 2003. Gareth\u2019s version with The Kumars, from the comedy show <em>The Kumars at Number 42<\/em>, was released as the official <em>Comic Relief<\/em> charity single in 2003. It peaked at number one and became Gates\u2019s fourth number one single.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/aOKTW6Zt_cU\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>2004<\/h3>\n<p><strong><em>Do They Know It&#8217;s Christmas?<\/em> &#8211; Band Aid 20<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The 2004 re-recording of the 1984 charity single <em>Do They Know It&#8217;s Christmas?<\/em> sold more than 70,000 copies in the first 24 hours of release. Midge Ure and Bob Geldof stayed as the constants but many of the artists from 1984 were left off the update. Looking at this almost 14 years later, and you may not be able to name them either but Dido, Daniel Bedingfield and Katie Melua all lent their vocals to the charity single.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/yqLLDZvbG-U\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>2005<\/h3>\n<p><strong><em>(Is This the Way to) Amarillo<\/em> &#8211; Tony Christie featuring Peter Kay<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Tony Christie\u2019s catchy track <em>(Is This the Way to) Amarillo<\/em> got a new lease of life when Peter Kay used it in his show, <em>Phoenix Nights<\/em> back in 2002. Three years later, the song was re-released to raise money for <em>Comic Relief<\/em>, with Christie featuring in the music video. Brian May, Ronnie Corbet and Jim Bowen featured in the video too.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/sxbX-z5-QHs\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>2006<\/h3>\n<p><strong><em>A Moment Like This<\/em> &#8211; Leona Lewis<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>A Moment Like This<\/em> was the debut single for Kelly Clarkson when she won <em>American Idol<\/em>, before it was gifted to the super-talented Leona Lewis when she won the third series of <em>X Factor<\/em>. Her single was downloaded 50,000 times within 30 minutes of being available. It became Christmas number one, outselling the rest of the top 40 combined!<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/7_weSk0BonM\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>2007<\/h3>\n<p><strong><em>Bleeding Love<\/em> \u201d\u201c Leona Lewis<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>Bleeding Love<\/em>, taken from Lewis\u2019s debut album <em>Spirit<\/em>, was a huge international hit. It charted in the UK in three different years; 2007, 2008 and 2009. It was nominated for Record of the Year at the Grammy Awards after it topped the charts in the US. In fact, it reached number in 35 countries \u201d\u201c only the second song to do so after Elton John\u2019s <em>Candle in the Wind 1997<\/em>.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/aplWTXEcY70\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>2008<\/h3>\n<p><strong><em>Hallelujah<\/em> &#8211; Alexandra Burke<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Leonard Cohen\u2019s song <em>Hallelujah<\/em> has been covered countless times over the years. It was only a matter of time before it was chosen as a winner\u2019s song for <em>X Factor<\/em>, which it was in 2005 when Alexandra Burke took the crown. The song sold over 105,000 digital downloads in one day breaking the previous record which was set by former <em>X Factor<\/em> alumni Leona Lewis. To date, it\u2019s the biggest-selling <em>X Factor<\/em> winner\u2019s single.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Qr31Vhu01fc\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>2009<\/h3>\n<p><strong><em>Fight For this Love<\/em> &#8211; Cheryl Cole<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>You\u2019ll remember the chorus, the video and the army outfit just like it was yesterday. Cheryl Cole\u2019s debut solo single was huge and put her on a very successful path in her own right. She performed the track on <em>X Factor<\/em>; following that, she topped the charts in the UK and Ireland. <em>Fight For this Love<\/em> also took the top spot in Denmark, Hungary and Poland.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/-Hri715W56I\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>2010<\/h3>\n<p><strong><em>When We Collide<\/em> \u201d\u201c Matt Cardle<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>You guessed it \u201d\u201c it\u2019s another <em>X Factor<\/em> winner. This time, the winner of the seventh series, Matt Cardle, covered a rock track rather than the standard pop single. <em>When We Collide<\/em> is Cardle\u2019s version of the Biffy Clyro single<em> Many of Horror<\/em>. Cardle hit the top spot for Christmas number one, but Biffy Clyro fans weren\u2019t happy. They started a petition to get <em>Many of Horror<\/em> to Christmas number one, but it charted at number eight.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Have you got old CDs clogging up shelves in your house? Sell them to musicMagpie for quick cash!<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/192.168.3.178\/start-selling\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-6492 aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/192.168.3.178\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/startselling-300x60.jpg\" alt=\"Start Selling\" width=\"300\" height=\"60\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.musicmagpie.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/startselling-300x60.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.musicmagpie.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/startselling.jpg 400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The turn of the millennium saw the rise of talent shows on TV, spurring a number of short lived superstars but also a few gems who have stuck around longer than the festive period. The 2000\u2019s produced some huge hits \u201d\u201c some much better than others! Prepare for a few &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":9291,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[159],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.musicmagpie.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9289"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.musicmagpie.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.musicmagpie.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.musicmagpie.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.musicmagpie.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9289"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.musicmagpie.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9289\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9294,"href":"https:\/\/www.musicmagpie.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9289\/revisions\/9294"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.musicmagpie.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9291"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.musicmagpie.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9289"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.musicmagpie.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9289"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.musicmagpie.co.uk\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9289"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}