Singles Poll Analysis

This page features the results, and analysis, of various polls to find the best, or favourite, singles. As with many polls, they are dominated by tracks from recent years, which then fall spectacularly in subsequent polls. Hence, by considering numerous polls a more accurate result can be obtained.

In all of these lists, if a single was originally listed as a double-A side then I have generally only included the more well known track (eg The Beatles 'Day Tripper / We Can Work It Out' would be given as just 'We Can Work It Out').

Unless stated all of the polls on this page are to find the best number one singles, rather than general singles.

Channel 4 Poll, 2000/2001

This poll was revealed in a programme hosted by Graham Norton on Channel 4. One source suggested that the poll was held in 2003, but from memory I think it was 2000 or 2001. The most recent tracks are from 1999 and 2000 and given that the majority of polls feature very recent acts it seems more likely to be from 2000 or 2001.

The Guinness Book Of Hit Singles Poll, 2002

This poll was to mark 50 years of charts from 1952-2002, and was published in the 15th Edition of the 'Guinness Book of Hit Singles'. The poll was based on 31,000 votes, and covered hit singles and not just number ones.

Radio 2 Poll, 2002

This poll was revealed in August 2002 and was held to mark the 50th Anniversary of the charts. Voters were recruited through Radio 2, the Guinness Book Of Hit Singles, Friends Reunited, and The Sun, and was based on a total of 188,000 votes.

VH1 Poll, 2004

This poll was held between July and August 2004 with the results revealed on VH1 in August 2004. I'm not sure whether it focused entirely on number one singles, but all of the tracks that I have checked did indeed reach the top spot.

Radio 1 Poll, 2005

This poll was held on Radio 1 to celebrate the 1000th Number One single, so must be from January or February 2005, and was based on around 26,000 votes.

Channel 5 Poll, 2005

This poll was revealed in 'The Nations Favourite Number One Singles' in February 2005. Unfortunately the only list I can find omits the track at position 37.

ITV Poll, 2012

This poll was revealed in 'The Nations Favourite Number One Single' in July 2012. It was based on a public vote, most likely via the ITV website.

Comparison Table

This table shows the top 10 tracks, ordered by their average position across the polls. A similar approach, including a different selection of polls, but reaching a similar conclusion, is also available here.

	Song - Artist	Ch 4, 2000/1	Guinness, 2002	Radio 2, 2002	VH1, 2004	Radio 1, 2005	Ch 5, 2005	ITV, 2012	Average
1	Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen	2	1	1	3	1	1	1	1.4
2	Imagine - John Lennon	1	2	2	2	10	7	6	4.3
3	Don't Look Back in Anger - Oasis	8	12	41	4	7	27	4	14.7
4	Hey Jude - The Beatles	3	3	3	--	11	3	5	18.4
5	Every Breath You Take - The Police	5	45	13	13	--	9	24	18.6
6	Dancing Queen - Abba	4	4	8	--	8	8	8	20.1
7	Billie Jean - Michael Jackson	23	15	88	1	3	22	2	22.0
8	(Everything I Do) I Do It For You - Bryan Adams	10	18	45	6	--	--	14	22.1
9	Like A Prayer - Madonna	13	5	80	9	4	--	16	24.0
10	Crazy In Love - Beyonce	NYR	NYR	NYR	21	--	--	23	26.5