THE POGUES' Christmas classic 'Fairytale Of New York' with KIRSTY MacCOLL has been voted the UK's favourite Christmas song by over 10,000 VH-1 viewers, narrowly beating the original 1984 version of BAND AID's 'Do They Know It's Christmas' into second place (with the new Band Aid 20 version in fifth). WHAM! took third place with 'Last Christmas' with FRANKIE GOES TO HOLLYWOOD's 'Power Of Love' fifteenth, ALED JONES' 'Walking In The Air' nineteenth and BON JOVI's 'Please Come Home For Christmas' at twenty.
NEW ORDER have announced a release date for their forthcoming album. The currently untitled record will be released on March 28th, preceded by a live album 'No Pain No Gain' from bassist PETER HOOK's side project REVENGE which will be released in February.
DAVID BOWIE fans have started an online petition to get Bowie's 1983 album 'Bowie Rare' released on CD for the first time. To add your name to the petition click here.
KATRINA & THE WAVES' frontwoman KATRINA LESKANICH is hoping to be the Swedish entry for the next Eurovision Song Contest with a new song ‘As If Tomorrow Never Comes' and will perform under the name Katrina & The New Waves.
DURAN DURAN will play a one-off UK show for BBC Radio 2 at London's Hammersmith Palais on January 13th. Tickets can be won by calling or texting Radio 2 and you can see more details at their website. The show will be broadcast on Radio Two on Saturday, January 29 from 9.30 to 10.30pm.
BROS frontman MATT GOSS is to publish his autobiography 'More Than You Know' on March 14th next year. there are likely to be a number of book signings as part of the book's promotion as well as a short UK tour.
GO WEST will be celebrating their 20th Anniversary next year with a number of special shows including a gig at the prestigious Birmingham Symphony Hall on April 8th with a range of special guests promised.
ERASURE will play a rare DJ set at London club G-A-Y on January 22nd in support of their forthcoming album 'Nightbird' and single 'Breathe'.
BOY GEORGE's forthcoming autobiography 'Straight', the follow up volume to his highly successful 'Take It Like A Man', will be published on March 3rd next year and initial quantities will also come with a CD of new material.
FIVE STAR will play two UK club dates in the run-up to Christmas. The band will play the shows in London and Basildon.
MATT BIANCO have announced a rare London show at London's Shepherd's Bush Empire on March 24th 2005.
U2 will release a new single, the second from their million-selling album 'How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb' on February 7th. 'Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own' will also feature a Jacknife Lee remix of ‘Ave Maria’ sung by Bono with Pavarotti.
