On the first day of Whamageddon, my true love gave to me… noise-cancelling headphones? A ticket to Antarctica — or perhaps somewhere with no radio reception?
Anything, really, to reduce the chances of accidentally hearing Wham!’s “Last Christmas” and thereby losing the most dreaded holiday challenge of the season.
So, what exactly is Whamageddon? The aim is simple: Get through the entire Christmas season — from December 1 to December 24 — without hearing Wham!’s iconic 1984 holiday hit. But with “Last Christmas” often played on repeat at adult contemporary stations with all-Christmas formats, the odds are never in your favour.
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The Challenge
Every stray twist of the radio dial or trip to the dentist’s office could spell disaster. And heaven help you if the 2019 movie Last Christmas comes on TV. If you hear the song and get “Whammed,” you’re out — and you’re encouraged to announce your defeat on social media and retire from the game. Because, as if the holidays weren’t stressful enough, there’s now this to avoid!
One victim posted on Facebook, “I was officially Whammed today at approximately 3:00pm EST while wrapping presents listening to Christmas music. And I’m out already. Thanks United Airlines… they’re playing our song while boarding.”
That’s nothing compared to what happened last December when a DJ in Northampton, U.K., deliberately played “Last Christmas” for 7,215 people at a football stadium. Matt Facer, known as “DJ Matty,” later apologised for what he called a “horrible” prank. “I gave it a spin, thinking it would be funny to wipe out 7,000 people who couldn’t avoid it, but clearly it isn’t funny,” he said.
Facer’s actions violated the “Whamageddon Rule No. 6” — “Don’t sabotage the game.” As the official Whamageddon website states, it’s a “survival game,” not a “battle royale.” So, don’t be a jerk, mkay?
The Origins of Whamageddon
The Whamageddon game emerged from Northern California in the mid-’90s, evolving from the “Little Drummer Boy Challenge,” which was even tougher. Players had to avoid hearing the Christmas song “Pa-Rum-Pa-Pa-Pum” for the entire month from Thanksgiving to Christmas.
The game was formally coined by four Danish friends — Thomas Mertz, Rasmus Leth Bjerre, Oliver Nøglebæk, and Søren Gelineck — nearly two decades ago. They were collectively fed up with hearing George Michael’s infamous line, “Last Christmas, I gave you my heart, But the very next day you gave it away…” played over and over again during the holiday season.
For many years, “Last Christmas” held the record for the highest-selling single never to reach number one, with 1.9 million copies sold (excluding streams). However, the song finally topped the UK Singles Chart on New Year’s Day 2021.
The Rise of Whamageddon
Thanks to the creation of a Whamageddon Facebook page in 2016, the game quickly spread worldwide. What began as a small group of frustrated holiday listeners has now become an international phenomenon, with people from all over the world attempting to avoid the dreaded track during the holiday season.
As for the game’s Danish creators, they’ve become unwitting holiday icons. “We kind of realized this song was being played constantly, over and over,” said Mertz in a 2023 interview. “It was just in really heavy rotation. And instead of getting annoyed with it, we decided to make a game out of it and have a little bit of fun.”
A Solution for Fans of the Song
But what if you actually like “Last Christmas”? What if winning the game means giving up a cherished holiday favourite?
Don’t worry, there are ways around it. One option is to play a variation of Whamageddon called “Wham!Hunter,” where you earn points for hearing the song.
Alternatively, you can listen to a cover version of “Last Christmas” instead. The official Whamageddon rules state that only the original Wham! version of the song counts. Covers and remixes are safe!
Here’s a Whamucopia of alternate versions you can enjoy without fear of being “whammed”:
- “Last Christmas,” Whigfield, 1995
- “Last Christmas,” Ashley Tisdale, 2006
- “Last Christmas,” Crazy Frog, 2006
- “Last Christmas,” Cascada, 2007
- “Last Christmas,” Taylor Swift, 2007
- “Last Christmas,” Cast of Glee, 2010
- “Last Christmas,” Joe McElderry, 2011
- “Last Christmas,” Ariana Grande, 2013
- “Last Christmas,” Carly Rae Jepsen, 2015
- “Last Christmas,” Backstreet Boys, 2022
- “Last Christmas,” Tarja Turunen, 2023
Enjoy the season — and may your Whamageddon game be victorious!