It has topped the charts and already been listened to more than a million times but the Christmas hit criticising Sir Keir Starmer was created by a duo who have never met.
‘Freezing This Christmas’ is about the government’s slashing of winter fuel payments for pensioners and the resulting ‘hardship’ imposed on its prey.
The track was composed by freelance marketer and writer Chris Middleton and uses the melody of Mud’s 1974 hit ‘Lonely This Christmas’ and has been released under the faux band name Sir Starmer and the Granny Harmers.
It was sung by Frank Sinatra impersonator Dean Ager, 51, from Worthing, who recorded it in only 15 minutes.
All sales proceeds will be donated to organisations that assist the elderly.
The song features the vocals: ‘It’ll be freezing this Christmas, without fuel at home, it’ll be freezing this Christmas, while Keir Starmer is warm. It’ll be cold, so cold, without fuel at home, this Christmas.’
Middleton, from Newcastle, said he was inspired by ‘something on Twitter a couple of months ago about trying to do a Christmas song for pensioners’ and that the hook of the chorus then ‘just came’ to him.
Speaking to the Telegraph, Ager said that Middleton had stumbled across him online when he was looking for a singer for the record and offered just £50 for him to perform the track.
Ager explained: ‘Chris contacted me and said ”I’ve got this song – can you do it?” He paid me £50 and I recorded it in about 15 minutes. I already knew the tune, well-ish, and so I sent it and scurried off on my way. I thought that would be the end of it.
‘When Chris asked me if I wanted recognition I looked at the lyrics again and thought ”Wow, that’s something”, but when he told me we were number one on the iTunes download charts, I was jumping around in excitement like a little kid.’
Middleton was raised by his grandparents for a number of years and says he has seen first-hand how damaging Labour’s fuel payment policy had been.
He said: ‘Older people do feel the cold more.
‘My gran had a heart attack and her medication makes her blood vessels constrict so she is always freezing. Even in summer, she’s bundled up by the fire.
‘After 14 years of the Tories we were all fed up, and we thought things would be different under Labour, but it’s way worse than anyone thought.’
Ager, who frequently does gigs at care homes, agreed, saying he is ‘not very political’ but that ‘you don’t have to look far to see that the elderly are vulnerable and a lot of people are really struggling’.
An original member of Mud, Rob Davis, who is now 77, is among those to express their support for the record.
He said of winter fuel cuts: ‘That’s not a good thing. I mean, there are a lot of very broke people over here. It’s very hard.’
He also said of the parody arrangement: ‘It’s a good version. The vocals sound the same as Les [Gray, the late singer of Mud]. It’s a cool version.’
Perhaps paralleling the production of earlier charity Christmas songs, ‘Freezing This Christmas’ was written quickly – reportedly in an hour – and has already raised £24,000.
The amount is not quite as much as the millions made by Band-Aid’s “Do They Know It’s Christmas,” but the men who wrote the new holiday charity song haven’t even met yet, just like many of the singers of the classic 80s track.
While 1.4 million people have already watched the cover on YouTube, the only airtime the song has had so far on radio is through a small chart round-up on Heart Radio, a channel run by media company Global.
But bookmaker William Hill has pegged the song as a second favourite to become Christmas No 1.
Every Friday, the Official Charts Company releases the official singles chart, which combines sales from physical purchases, paid downloads, and streaming to determine the week’s top-selling song.
William Hill has spoken of how the single is now actually ‘a serious contender to top the charts on Christmas Day and that a miracle next week is still on the table.
The company presently has Wham! at 1/16 odds to take pole position and Sir Starmer and the Granny Harmers at 12/1.
After Rachel Reeves changed the regulations governing winter fuel subsidies, tens of thousands of senior citizens may have to choose between heating and eating this Christmas.
The chancellor announced this summer that claims for the allowance, which is intended to support pensioners with energy bills and is worth up to £300, would be mainly limited to people eligible for pension credit.
The shift resulted in a wave of pension credit claims that has overwhelmed Whitehall, creating a pile-up of 91,075 unprocessed applications as of 18 November, according to Emma Reynolds, the pensions minister.
It’s an amazing song, and these two guys deserve a lot of credit for using comedy to make their argument in a tactful yet powerful way.
Apparently, the BBC is refusing to push it, which tells you everything you need to know about the BBC.
What a lot of people don’t comprehend is that it is the single pensioner who will suffer the most because they still have to pay the same bill for the heat as a couple or family would.
A single radiator for instance heats a room no matter how many people are in it. A thermostat can be turned down or even turned off if there are many people in a room because body heat warms instead.
The cost of living has increased, and supermarkets are offering groceries better suited for parties with families around this time of year, ignoring the fact that many individuals will be sitting at home alone and unable to afford to spend money on extravagant meals or meals that are prepared for several people. Eating keeps the body warm.
For many people, this is a terrible time of year, and the government’s thoughtless and uninformed actions have made it even worse, and it’s refreshing to see young people identifying the problem by writing a song – well done!
This song hasn’t had the airtime et cetera like the sausage roll Christmas song from previous years, and I wonder why. Maybe it’s because the words in this song are true and caused by those who are paid to serve and look after us, and it appears that those who come from across the water are more of a priority.
THE MONTHLY MOSQUITO 