Could AC/DC’s Highway To Hell be number one for Christmas? (Picture: PA)

There’s a new contender in the race for the Christmas number one – and it comes in the shape of rockers AC/DC.

The band – formed by siblings Malcolm and Angus Young in 1973 – have become the subjects of the latest Facebook campaign to snatch the Christmas No 1 away from other candidates, which this year include the X Factor winner and Susan Boyle.

The campaign’s aim is to see the band hit the top spot with their 1979 single Highway To Hell – in recognition of their 40th anniversary as a band and the fact they have never had a top ten hit in the UK charts never mind a number one.



MORE: Five classic AC/DC songs that would make a better Christmas No 1 than Highway To Hell


If they succeed it could give the Young brothers some long overdue success for the track, which only reached a lowly number 40 when it was first released in the UK.

The band’s most successful single in this country was Heatseeker, which fell just short of the top ten with a number 12 placing in 1988.

So far, over 96,000 people have shown their support to the Facebook page, which first appeared late last week.

It follows the unprecedented success of the 2009 campaign to get Rage Against The Machine’s Killing In The Name to number one for Christmas instead of The X Factor winners’ single.

In that instance the US rockers did indeed beat that year’s winner Joe McElderry to the top spot over the festive season – although McElderry eventually reached number one with his track The Climb the week after Christmas.

This year’s X Factor winner will be among the contenders for the festive number one, with their debut single released on December 16 – the day after the show’s final – ahead of the Christmas chart on December 22.

Other contenders for the coveted chart-topper include Susan Boyle, choirboy Jack Topping, Britain’s Got Talent finalists Richard & Adam and a cover of Wizzard’s I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday by Big Reunion stars Blue, Atomic Kitten, 5ive, Liberty X and B*witched.