You won’t want to miss a documentary about the ultimate Christmas song on the box tonight

We all know the words, but how much do you know about the making of the song itself?

Granted, the list of candidates is as long as Santa’s arm, but surely a World Cup of Christmas songs is as good a barometer as any to determine the best Christmas song of them all. With ‘Fairytale of New York’ defeating Wham’s ‘Last Christmas’ to emerge as the winner of that particular competition in the last few days, we’re comfortable in declaring it as the ultimate Christmas song, but if you needed further convincing, then give this a read. https://twitter.com/richardosman/status/942141655884460038 If you want to know more about it, then it’s worth tuning into a documentary with the same name as the song on RTÉ One on Thursday night. In the documentary, one of the two main voices in the song, Shane McGowan, reminisces about the writing of the song over the course of two years before its release shortly before Christmas in 1987. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9jbdgZidu8 Clip via RhinoUK Airing three days on from the 17^th anniversary of the tragic death of Kirsty MacColl, the documentary promises to provide a fascinating insight into a song that still rouses the festive spirit in anyone who listens to it 30 years after its release. Fairytale of New York is on RTÉ One at 9.30pm on Thursday.