Military wives choir favourites for Christmas No 1

Military wives choir favourites for Christmas No 1
Military wives choir favourites for Christmas No 1 (Image credit: PA Archive/Press Association Ima)

Gareth Malone's choir of military wives has become the bookies' favourite for the Christmas number one, after edging ahead of The X Factor winner. A flurry of bets has pushed the group's single Wherever You Are into prime position, according to new figures issued by William Hill this morning. They are releasing the track after winning fans during the BBC2 series The Choir: Military Wives. The ensemble was put together and coached by choral maestro Gareth from the wives of serving military personnel, and went on to perform at this year's Festival of Remembrance at the Royal Albert Hall. The choir has been backed by figures such as Radio 2 presenter Chris Evans, who has been urging listeners to support the single. And they will have the extra boost of an appearance on the Sunday results show for the Strictly Come Dancing semi-finals. Hill's placing it at 8/13 due to the volume of betting, with the eventual winner of The X Factor at 6/5. Rupert Adams, a spokesman for the bookmaker, said: "This is sensational news as it takes a serious weight of money to move the market this much." The victor of the ITV1 singing contest has largely dominated the festive charts, although in 2009 a backlash prompted music fans to push Killing In The Name by Rage Against The Machine to the top instead of X Factor winner Joe McElderry. Gennaro Castaldo, of retailer HMV, said of the choir's single: "Based on the momentum that is building very quickly around it, we're predicting that it will land this year's Christmas number one." He said the track was shaping up to be one of the company's biggest pre-orders. The CD of the single is being released by Decca Records on December 19.

Patrick McLennan

Patrick McLennan is a London-based journalist and documentary maker who has worked as a writer, sub-editor, digital editor and TV producer in the UK and New Zealand. His CV includes spells as a news producer at the BBC and TVNZ, as well as web editor for Time Inc UK. He has produced TV news and entertainment features on personalities as diverse as Nick Cave, Tom Hardy, Clive James, Jodie Marsh and Kevin Bacon and he co-produced and directed The Ponds, which has screened in UK cinemas, BBC Four and is currently available on Netflix. 


An entertainment writer with a diverse taste in TV and film, he lists Seinfeld, The Sopranos, The Chase, The Thick of It and Detectorists among his favourite shows, but steers well clear of most sci-fi.