Non-fiction
Last Christmas
German, Michael Winklmann, Matthias Werner, Johannes Heger, Marina Fleck, 2023
Retro news: Whamtastic or torture for the ears? "Last Christmas" celebrates its birthday
15.12.2023
Translation: machine translated
The Christmas classic "Last Christmas" was released 39 years ago. The famous music video was filmed in the Swiss winter sports resort of Saas-Fee.
"Last Christmas, I gave you my heart..." That's all I have to type: You know the words. What a marvellous Christmas song, in my opinion, I know - opinions differ. Others have long since stopped listening to the song.
At number 1 for the first time in 36 years
Did you know that today is the birthday of "Last Christmas"? 39 years ago today, on 15 December 1984, the song by British pop group "Wham!" was released on Epic Records. The song, composed by George Michael (1963 to 2016), is considered one of the most-played Christmas songs. In 2018, the song charted in the German singles charts for the 130th time. The record sold around 1.6 million copies in the first year after its release. However, it reached number 1 for the first time in 2021, both in Germany and in England.
The film was shot in Switzerland
The song is about a past love affair. The accompanying video, which was filmed with flashbacks in a chalet in the Swiss winter sports resort of Saas-Fee in the Valais Alps, is also striking. British model Kathy Hill, dressed in red, plays the ex. The video also features backing vocalist Shirlie Holliman and her future husband Martin Kemp, bassist with Spandau Ballet.
The funniest anecdotes from Wham!
This summer, Netflix released a documentary about George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley's pop band. In it, viewers learnt some funny anecdotes about "Last Christmas". Want an example?
Ridgeley said that George Michael and he were watching football when the idea for the song came to him and he then retreated to his childhood bedroom for an hour. When he had finished, he is said to have shouted: We have four number 1 songs this year! Previously, "Careless Whisper", "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" and "Freedom" had already climbed to the top of the charts. However, "Last Christmas" only made it to number 2 in the UK charts in 1984, with "Do They Know It's Christmas", a Band Aid charity single in which George Michael was also involved, taking first place.
Also funny: until then, it had always been assumed that "Last Christmas" should actually have been called "Last Easter" and was therefore planned for Easter 1985.
As befits world stars, Ridgeley and Michael were drunk during the filming of the famous video - so much so that Ridgeley is still surprised today that it was made at all. He also reveals this in the documentary.
If you want to find out more about the song, the band Wham or George Michael, you can read about it in one of the books:
Is "Last Christmas" as much a part of Christmas for you as the Christmas tree? Or do you cover your ears as soon as it comes on? Let me know in the comments.
Cover photo: Ralf Liebhold/Shutterstock
A true local journalist with a secret soft spot for German pop music. Mum of two boys, a dog and about 400 toy cars in all shapes and colours. I always enjoy travelling, reading and go to concerts, too.