thumb|upright|right|[[Madonna had six number ones during the 1980s.]]
The UK singles chart is the official record chart in the United Kingdom. Until 1983, it was compiled weekly by the British Market Research Bureau (BMRB) on behalf of the British record industry with a two-week break each Christmas. On 4 January 1983, the chart was taken over by Gallup who expanded the chart from the Top 75 to the Top 100 The chart was based entirely on sales of physical singles from retail outlets and announced on Tuesday until October 1987, when the Top 40 was revealed each Sunday, due to the new automated process.
During the 1980s, there were a total of 191 singles that took the UK chart number 1 spot. In terms of number-one singles, Madonna was the most successful single act of the decade, as six of her singles reached the top spot. George Michael had significant involvement with eight number-one singles; with two number-one singles as a solo artist, four as a member of pop duo Wham!, one as a duet with Aretha Franklin and one as a member of charity supergroup Band Aid. The longest duration of a single at number one was nine weeks, achieved by Frankie Goes to Hollywood's "Two Tribes" in 1984.
The best-selling single of the decade was "Do They Know It's Christmas?" by Band Aid, selling more than 3.5 million copies, and passing "Mull of Kintyre" by Wings to become the best-selling single ever. "Do They Know It's Christmas?" is currently the second best-selling song after "Candle in the Wind 1997" by Elton John.
The 1980s saw the introduction of the cassette single (or "cassingle") alongside the 7-inch and 12-inch record formats and in 1987 major record labels developed a common format for the CD single. For the chart week ending 3 May 1989, chart regulations confined Kylie Minogue's song "Hand on Your Heart" to number two. Minogue would have reached number one if sales from cassette singles were included but they were sold for £1.99 – cheaper than was allowed at the time. Following the debacle the British Phonographic Industry reduced the minimum price for cassette singles to become eligible towards sales figures.
Number-one singles
thumb|upright|right|[[The Jam achieved four number ones during the 1980s, with three of them - "Going Underground", "Town Called Malice" and "Beat Surrender" - entering the chart at number one.]]
thumb|upright|right|In 1980 [[ABBA scored their two most recent number ones, their last being Super Trouper.]]
thumb|upright|right|[[John Lennon was murdered in 1980, and three of his singles reached number one posthumously.]]
thumb|upright|right|[[Michael Jackson had three number-one singles in the 1980s, scoring his first ever number-one single in 1981 with "One Day in Your Life", followed by "Billie Jean" in 1983 and "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" in 1987.]]
thumb|upright|right|During the 1980s, [[Culture Club had two number ones, including the best-selling single of 1983, "Karma Chameleon". Frontman Boy George would later achieve a solo number one in 1987.]]
thumb|upright|right|[[George Michael was one of the most successful artists of the 1980s, with three number-one singles as a solo artist and four as part of Wham!.]]
thumb|upright|right|[[Bob Geldof co-wrote "Do They Know It's Christmas?", which was the biggest-selling single of the decade.]]
thumb|upright|right|[[Frankie Goes to Hollywood had three consecutive singles reach number one, of which two, "Relax" and "Two Tribes", sold more than one million copies.]]
thumb|upright|right|In 1985, [[Jennifer Rush was the first female artist to have a single sell more than a million copies, with "The Power of Love".]]
thumb|upright|right|During the 1980s, the [[Pet Shop Boys gained four number ones, "West End Girls", "It's a Sin", "Always on My Mind" and "Heart".]]
thumb|upright|right|In 1988, [[Kylie Minogue went to number one with her debut UK single "I Should Be So Lucky", and achieved two more number ones in 1989.]]
{|class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="font-size:90%;"
|+Key
|-
!scope=row style="background-color:#FFFF99" |†
| Best-selling single of the year
|-
!scope=row style="background-color:lightblue" |‡
| Best-selling single of the decade|group="nb"|name="all"
!scope=col|Single|group=nb|name=RecordLabel
!scope=col|Week ending date The rules now require at most four distinct songs to be eligible for the UK singles chart. Although the EP is credited to The Special A.K.A. on the record sleeve the record label credits The Specials.|group="nb"
| 2 Tone||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|451
| ||"Coward of the County"
| United Artists||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|452
| Blondie||"Atomic"
| Chrysalis||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|453
| ||"Together We Are Beautiful"
| WEA||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|454
| ||"Going Underground" / "Dreams of Children"
| Polydor||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|455
| The Detroit Spinners||"Working My Way Back to You – Forgive Me Girl"
| Atlantic||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|456
| Blondie||"Call Me"
| Chrysalis||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|457
| Dexys Midnight Runners||"Geno"
| Late Night Feelings ||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|458
| ||"What's Another Year"
| Epic||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|459
| ||"Theme from M*A*S*H (Suicide is Painless)"
| CBS||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|460
| ||"Crying"
| EMI||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|461
| and Electric Light Orchestra||"Xanadu"
| Jet||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|462
| Odyssey||"Use It Up and Wear It Out"
| RCA||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|463
| ABBA||""
| Epic||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|464
| ||"Ashes to Ashes"
| RCA||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|465
| ||"Start!"
| Polydor||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|466
| ||"Feels Like I'm in Love"
| Calibre Plus ||||align="center"|2
|-bgcolor=#FFFF99
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|467
| ||"Don't Stand So Close to Me" †
| A&M||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|468
| ||"Woman in Love"
| CBS||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|469
| Blondie||""
| Chrysalis||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|470
| ABBA||"Super Trouper"
| Epic||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|471
| ||""
| Geffen||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|472
| St Winifred's School Choir||"There's No One Quite Like Grandma"
| MFP||||align="center"|2
|-class="unsortable"
!scope=row style="text-align:center;" colspan=6 bgcolor=#F2F2F2|
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|473
| ||"Imagine"
| Apple||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|474
| ||"Woman"
|Geffen|| ||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|475
| ||"Shaddap You Face"
| Epic||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|476
| Roxy Music||"Jealous Guy"
| E.G.||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|477
| Shakin' Stevens ||"This Ole House"
| Epic||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|478
| Bucks Fizz||"Making Your Mind Up"
| RCA||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|479
| ||"Stand and Deliver"
| CBS||||align="center"|5
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|480
| ||"Being with You"
| Motown||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|481
| ||"One Day In Your Life"
| Motown||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|482
| ||"Ghost Town"
| 2 Tone||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|483
| Shakin' Stevens||"Green Door"
| Epic||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|484
| Aneka||"Japanese Boy"
| Hansa||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|485
| Soft Cell||"Tainted Love"
| Some Bizzare||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|486
| ||"Prince Charming"
| CBS||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|487
| with Barbara Gaskin||"It's My Party"
| Stiff||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|488
| ||"Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic"
| A&M||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|489
| Queen and David Bowie||"Under Pressure"
| EMI||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|490
| ||"Begin the Beguine (Volver a Empezar)"
| CBS||||align="center"|1
|-
|-bgcolor=#FFFF99
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|491
| ||"Don't You Want Me" †
| Virgin||||align="center"|5
|-class="unsortable"
!scope=row style="text-align:center;" colspan=6 bgcolor=#F2F2F2|
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|492
| Bucks Fizz||""
| RCA||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|493
| Shakin' Stevens||"Oh Julie"
| Epic||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|494
| Kraftwerk|| "The Model""Computer Love"
| EMI||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|495
| ||"Town Called Malice""Precious"
| Polydor||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|496
| Tight Fit||""
| Jive||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|497
| Goombay Dance Band||"Seven Tears"
| Epic||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|498
| Bucks Fizz||"My Camera Never Lies"
| RCA||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|499
| and Stevie Wonder ||"Ebony and Ivory"
| Parlophone||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|500
| Nicole||""
| CBS||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|501
| Madness||"House of Fun"
| Stiff||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|502
| ||"Goody Two Shoes"
| CBS||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|503
| Charlene||"I've Never Been to Me"
| Motown||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|504
| Captain Sensible||"Happy Talk"
| A&M||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|505
| ||"Fame"
| RSO||||align="center"|3
|-bgcolor=#FFFF99
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|506
| Dexys Midnight Runners ||"Come On Eileen" †
| Mercury||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|507
| Survivor||"Eye of the Tiger"
| Scotti Bros.||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|508
| Musical Youth||"Pass the Dutchie"
| MCA||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|509
| Culture Club||"Do You Really Want to Hurt Me"
| Virgin||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|510
| ||"I Don't Wanna Dance"
| Ice|| ||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|511
| ||"Beat Surrender"
| Polydor||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|512
| Renée and Renato||"Save Your Love"
| Hollywood ||||align="center"|4
|-class="unsortable"
!scope=row style="text-align:center;" colspan=6 bgcolor=#F2F2F2|
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|513
| ||"You Can't Hurry Love"
| Virgin||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|514
| Men at Work||"Down Under"
| Epic||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|515
| Kajagoogoo||"Too Shy"
| EMI||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|516
| ||"Billie Jean"
| Epic||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|517
| ||"Total Eclipse of the Heart"
| CBS||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|518
| Duran Duran||"Is There Something I Should Know?"
| EMI||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|519
| ||"Let's Dance"
| EMI America|| ||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|520
| Spandau Ballet||"True"
| Chrysalis||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|521
| New Edition||"Candy Girl"
| London||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|522
| ||"Every Breath You Take"
| A&M||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|523
| ||"Baby Jane"
| Warner Bros.||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|524
| ||"Wherever I Lay My Hat (That's My Home)"
| CBS||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|525
| KC and the Sunshine Band||"Give It Up"
| Epic||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|526
| UB40||"Red Red Wine"
| DEP International||||align="center"|3
|-bgcolor=#FFFF99
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|527
| Culture Club||"Karma Chameleon" †
| Virgin||||align="center"|6
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|528
| ||"Uptown Girl"
| CBS||||align="center"|5
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|529
| ||"Only You"
| 10||||align="center"|5
|-class="unsortable"
!scope=row style="text-align:center;" colspan=6 bgcolor=#F2F2F2|
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|530
| ||"Pipes of Peace"
| Parlophone||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|531
| Frankie Goes to Hollywood||"Relax"
| ZTT||||align="center"|5
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|532
| Nena||"99 Red Balloons"
| Epic||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|533
| ||"Hello"
| Motown||||align="center"|6
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|534
| Duran Duran||""
| EMI||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|535
| Wham!||"Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go"
| Epic||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|536
| Frankie Goes to Hollywood||"Two Tribes"
|ZTT|| ||align="center"|9
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|537
| ||"Careless Whisper"
| Epic||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|538
| ||"I Just Called to Say I Love You"
| Motown||||align="center"|6
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|539
| Wham!||"Freedom"
| Epic||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|540
| ||"I Feel for You"
| Warner Bros.||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|541
| ||"I Should Have Known Better"
| A&M||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|542
| Frankie Goes to Hollywood||""
|ZTT|| ||align="center"|1
|-bgcolor=lightblue
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|543
| Band Aid||"Do They Know It's Christmas?" ‡
| Mercury||||align="center"|5
|-class="unsortable"
!scope=row style="text-align:center;" colspan=6 bgcolor=#F2F2F2|
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|544
| Foreigner|| "I Want to Know What Love Is"
| Atlantic||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|545
| and Barbara Dickson||"I Know Him So Well"
| RCA||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|546
| Dead or Alive||"You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)"
| Epic||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|547
| and Phil Collins||"Easy Lover"
| CBS||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|548
| USA for Africa||"We Are the World"
| CBS||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|549
| ||"Move Closer"
| Carrere||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|550
| ||"19"
| Chrysalis||||align="center"|5
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|551
| ||"You'll Never Walk Alone"
| Spartan ||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|552
| Sister Sledge||"Frankie"
| Atlantic||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|553
| Eurythmics||"There Must Be an Angel (Playing with My Heart)"
| RCA||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|554
| Madonna||"Into the Groove"
| Sire||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|555
| UB40 and Chrissie Hynde||"I Got You Babe"
| DEP International||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|556
| and Mick Jagger||"Dancing in the Street"
| EMI America|| ||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|557
| ||"If I Was"
| Chrysalis||||align="center"|1
|-bgcolor=#FFFF99
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|558
| ||"" †
| CBS||||align="center"|5
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|559
| ||""
| Virgin||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|560
| Wham!||"I'm Your Man"
| Epic||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|561
| ||"Saving All My Love for You"
| Arista||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|562
| Shakin' Stevens||"Merry Christmas Everyone"
| Epic||||align="center"|2
|-class="unsortable"
!scope=row style="text-align:center;" colspan=6 bgcolor=#F2F2F2|
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|563
| Pet Shop Boys||"West End Girls"
| Parlophone||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|564
| ||""
| Warner Bros.||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|565
| ||"When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going"
| Jive||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|566
| ||"Chain Reaction"
| Capitol||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|567
| and the Young Ones featuring Hank Marvin||"Living Doll"
| WEA||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|568
| ||""
| Epic||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|569
| Falco||"Rock Me Amadeus"
| A&M||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|570
| Spitting Image||""
| Virgin||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|571
| Doctor and the Medics||"Spirit in the Sky"
| IRS||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|572
| Wham!||""
| Epic||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|573
| Madonna||"Papa Don't Preach"
| Sire||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|574
| ||""
| A&M||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|575
| ||"I Want to Wake Up with You"
| Revue ||||align="center"|3
|-bgcolor=#FFFF99
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|576
| with Sarah Jane Morris||"Don't Leave Me This Way" †
| London||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|577
| Madonna||"True Blue"
| Sire||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|578
| ||"Every Loser Wins"
| BBC||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|579
| Berlin||"Take My Breath Away"
| CBS||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|580
| Europe||""
| Epic||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|581
| ||"Caravan of Love"
| Go! Discs||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|582
| ||"Reet Petite"
| SMP ||||align="center"|4
|-class="unsortable"
!scope=row style="text-align:center;" colspan=6 bgcolor=#F2F2F2|
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|583
| ||"Jack Your Body"
| DJ International||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|584
| and George Michael||"I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)"
| Epic||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|585
| ||"Stand by Me"
| Atlantic||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|586
| ||"Everything I Own"
| Virgin||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|587
| Mel and Kim||"Respectable"
| Supreme||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|588
| Ferry Aid||"Let It Be"
| CBS||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|589
| Madonna||"La Isla Bonita"
| Sire||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|590
| Starship||"Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now"
| Arista||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|591
| ||"I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)"
| Arista||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|592
| ||"Star Trekkin'"
| Bark ||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|593
| Pet Shop Boys||"It's a Sin"
| Parlophone||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|594
| Madonna||"Who's That Girl"
| Sire||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|595
| Los Lobos||"La Bamba"
| Slash||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|596
| and Siedah Garrett||"I Just Can't Stop Loving You"
| Epic||||align="center"|2
|-bgcolor=#FFFF99
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|597
| ||"Never Gonna Give You Up" †
| RCA||||align="center"|5
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|598
| MARRS||"Pump Up the Volume"
| 4AD||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|599
| Bee Gees||"You Win Again"
| Warner Bros.||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|600
| T'Pau||"China in Your Hand"
| Siren ||||align="center"|5
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|601
| Pet Shop Boys||"Always on My Mind"
| Parlophone||||align="center"|4
|-class="unsortable"
!scope=row style="text-align:center;" colspan=6 bgcolor=#F2F2F2|
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|602
| ||"Heaven Is a Place on Earth"
| Virgin||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|603
| Tiffany||"I Think We're Alone Now"
| MCA||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|604
| ||"I Should Be So Lucky"
| PWL||||align="center"|5
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|605
| Aswad||"Don't Turn Around"
| CBS||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|606
| Pet Shop Boys||"Heart"
| Parlophone||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|607
| S'Express||"Theme from S'Express"
| Rhythm King||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|608
| Fairground Attraction||"Perfect"
| RCA||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|609
| Wet Wet Wet / Billy Bragg and Cara Tivey ||"With a Little Help from My Friends" / "She's Leaving Home"
| Childline||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|610
| ||"Doctorin' the Tardis"
| KLF Communications||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|611
| Bros||"I Owe You Nothing"
| CBS||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|612
| ||"Nothing's Gonna Change My Love for You"
| London||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|613
| Yazz and the Plastic Population||"The Only Way Is Up"
| Big Life||||align="center"|5
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|614
| ||"A Groovy Kind of Love"
| Virgin||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|615
| ||"He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother"
| EMI||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|616
| U2||"Desire"
| Island||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|617
| ||"One Moment in Time"
| Arista||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|618
| Enya||"Orinoco Flow"
| WEA||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|619
| ||"First Time"
| Mercury||||align="center"|3
|-bgcolor=#FFFF99
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|620
| ||"Mistletoe and Wine" †
| EMI||||align="center"|4
|-class="unsortable"
!scope=row style="text-align:center;" colspan=6 bgcolor=#F2F2F2|
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|621
| Kylie Minogue and Jason Donovan||"Especially for You"
| PWL||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|622
| featuring Gene Pitney||"Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart"
| EMI||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|623
| Simple Minds||"Belfast Child"
|Virgin||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|624
| ||"Too Many Broken Hearts"
| PWL||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|625
| Madonna||"Like a Prayer"
| Sire||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|626
| ||"Eternal Flame"
| CBS||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|627
| ||"Hand on Your Heart"
| PWL||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|628
| , Holly Johnson, Paul McCartney, Gerry Marsden and Stock Aitken Waterman||"Ferry 'Cross the Mersey"
| PWL||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|629
| ||"Sealed with a Kiss"
| PWL||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|630
| Soul II Soul||"Back to Life (However Do You Want Me)"
| Virgin||||align="center"|4
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|631
| Sonia||"You'll Never Stop Me Loving You"
| Chrysalis||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|632
| Jive Bunny and the Mastermixers||"Swing the Mood"
| Music Factory Dance ||||align="center"|5
|-bgcolor=#FFFF99
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|633
| Black Box||"Ride on Time" †
| Deconstruction||||align="center"|6
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|634
| Jive Bunny and the Mastermixers||"That's What I Like"
| Music Factory Dance ||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|635
| ||"All Around the World"
| Arista||||align="center"|2
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|636
| New Kids on the Block||"You Got It (The Right Stuff)"
| CBS||||align="center"|3
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|637
| Jive Bunny and the Mastermixers||"Let's Party"
| Music Factory Dance ||||align="center"|1
|-
!scope=row style="text-align:center;"|638
| Band Aid II||"Do They Know It's Christmas?"
| PWL||||align="center"|3
|}
{| id="toc" class="toc" summary|="Contents"
!
|-
| style="padding:0 0.3em" |
|}
By artist
American entertainer Madonna was the most successful act of the decade in terms of number-one singles. She had six number ones: "Into the Groove" (1985); "Papa Don't Preach", "True Blue" (both 1986); "La Isla Bonita", "Who's That Girl" (both 1987); and "Like a Prayer" (1989). George Michael had significant involvement with seven number-one singles; he was also involved with Band Aid single "Do They Know It's Christmas?" but his contribution was less significant. He had two number-one singles as a solo artist, four as a member of pop duo Wham!, and one as a duet with Aretha Franklin. The following artists achieved three or more number-one hits during the 1980s.
{|class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable"
!scope=col|Artist
!scope=col|Number ones
!scope=col|Weeks at<br/>number one
|-
!scope=row|Madonna
|align=center|6
|align=center|14
|-
!scope=row|Pet Shop Boys
|align=center|4
|align=center|12
|-
!scope=row|
|align=center|4
|align=center|11
|-
!scope=row|Shakin' Stevens
|align=center|4
|align=center|10
|-
!scope=row|
|align=center|4
|align=center|9
|-
!scope=row|Wham!
|align=center|4
|align=center|9
|-
!scope=row|Frankie Goes to Hollywood
|align=center|3
|align=center|15
|-
!scope=row|Jive Bunny and the Mastermixers
|align=center|3
|align=center|9
|-
!scope=row|
|align=center|3
|align=center|9
|-
!scope=row|
|align=center|3
|align=center|9
|-
!scope=row|
|align=center|3
|align=center|8
|-
!scope=row|
|align=center|3
|align=center|8
|-
!scope=row|
|align=center|3
|align=center|8
|-
!scope=row|
|align=center|3
|align=center|7
|-
!scope=row|
|align=center|3
|align=center|7
|-
!scope=row|Bucks Fizz
|align=center|3
|align=center|6
|-
!scope=row|
|align=center|3
|align=center|6
|-
!scope=row|Blondie
|align=center|3
|align=center|5
|-
!scope=row|
|align=center|3
|align=center|5
|}
Additionally, Adam Ant and Boy George each had one solo number one hit and two number one hits as lead singers of bands (Adam and the Ants and Culture Club, respectively) totalling three number one hits each.
By record label
The following record labels had five or more number ones on the UK singles chart during the 1980s.
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
|-
!scope=col|Record label
!scope=col|Number ones
|-
|align=left|Epic
|align=center|23
|-
|align=left|CBS
|align=center|19
|-
|align=left|Virgin
|align=center|11
|-
|align=left|EMI
|align=center|9
|-
|align=left|RCA
|align=center|9
|-
|align=left|A&M
|align=center|7
|-
|align=left|Chrysalis
|align=center|7
|-
|align=left|PWL
|align=center|7
|-
|align=left|Parlophone
|align=center|6
|-
|align=left|Sire
|align=center|6
|-
|align=left|Arista
|align=center|5
|-
|align=left|Motown
|align=center|5
|-
|}
Songs with the most weeks at number one
The following songs spent at least five weeks at number one during the 1980s.
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
|-
!scope=col|Artist
!scope=col|Song
!scope=col|Weeks at<br/>number one
|-
|Frankie Goes to Hollywood
| "Two Tribes"
| 9
|-
|Culture Club
|"Karma Chameleon"
| rowspan="4" |6
|-
|Lionel Richie
|"Hello"
|-
|Stevie Wonder
|"I Just Called to Say I Love You"
|-
|Black Box
|"Ride on Time"
|-
|Adam and the Ants
|"Stand and Deliver"
| rowspan="13" |5
|-
|The Human League
|"Don't You Want Me"
|-
|Billy Joel
|"Uptown Girl"
|-
|The Flying Pickets
|"Only You"
|-
|Frankie Goes to Hollywood
|"Relax"
|-
|Band Aid
|"Do They Know It's Christmas?"
|-
|Paul Hardcastle
|"19"
|-
|Jennifer Rush
|"The Power of Love"
|-
|Rick Astley
|"Never Gonna Give You Up"
|-
|T'Pau
|"China in Your Hand"
|-
|Kylie Minogue
|"I Should Be So Lucky"
|-
|Yazz and the Plastic Population
|"The Only Way Is Up"
|-
|Jive Bunny and the Mastermixers
|"Swing the Mood"
|-
|}
Million-selling and platinum records
The British Phonographic Industry classified singles and albums since 1973 by the number of units sold, with the highest threshold being a "platinum record". Before 1989, a platinum record was given to singles that sold more than 1,000,000 units, a gold record for 500,000 unit sales and a silver record for 250,000. For singles released after 1 January 1989, the number of sales required to qualify for platinum, gold and silver records was dropped to 600,000 units (platinum), 400,000 units (gold) and 200,000 units (silver). Fifteen records were classified platinum in the 1980s. These include two songs from the 1970s that were classified platinum in the 1980s: Slade's "Merry Xmas Everybody", released in 1973, re-entered the charts and was classified platinum in 1980 and sold more than one million copies by 1985. Pink Floyd's 1979 release "Another Brick in the Wall (Part II)" was classified platinum at the beginning of 1980 and, although certified as selling 0.995 million units, is believed to have surpassed a million copies in the 1980s when sales not "over-the-counter" are included.
In the 1980s, twelve songs were released that were classified platinum in the decade; eleven of these also sold one million units in that time. In addition, a new version of "Do They Know It's Christmas?" by Band Aid II was released in December 1989 and was classified platinum in 1990 and John Lennon's "Imagine" (originally released in 1975), reached number one in 1981 following his death and sold more than a million copies. The other song released in the 1980s to sell a million copies is "Blue Monday" by New Order, which charted in several years during the decade, but was not listed as a million seller until later.
{|class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" border="1"
|-
!Artist
!Song
!Date released
!Date certified<br />platinum
!Year of millionth<br /> sale
|-
| ||"Imagine"
| || || 1981
|-
| || "Don't You Want Me"
| || || 1981
|-
| Dexys Midnight Runners and the Emerald Express ||"Come On Eileen"
| || || 1982
|-
| New Order||"Blue Monday" <sup>[No. 3]</sup>
| ||align="center"|— || 1983
|-
| Culture Club||"Karma Chameleon"
| || || 1983
|-
| Frankie Goes to Hollywood||"Relax"
| || || 1984
|-
| Frankie Goes to Hollywood||"Two Tribes"
| || || 1984
|-
| ||"Careless Whisper"
| || || 1984
|-
| ||"I Just Called to Say I Love You"
| || || 1984
|-
| Band Aid||"Do They Know It's Christmas?"
| || || 1984
|-
| Wham!||"Last Christmas""Everything She Wants"<sup>[No. 2]</sup>
| || || 1984
|-
| Jennifer Rush||""
| || || 1985
|-
| Jive Bunny and the Mastermixers||"Swing the Mood"
| || || —
|-
| Black Box||"Ride On Time"
| || || 2004–10
|-
| Band Aid II||"Do They Know It's Christmas?"
| || || —
|-
| ||"Stand and Deliver"
| || align="center"|— || 2004–10
|-
| Tight Fit||""
| ||align="center"|— || 2010–12
|-
| || "Fame"
| || align="center"|— || 2004–10
|-
| Survivor || "Eye of the Tiger"
| || align="center"|— || 2004–10
|-
| || "Uptown Girl"
| || align="center"|— || 2004–12
|-
| || "Ghostbusters"<sup>[No. 2]</sup>
| || align="center"|— || 2004–10
|-
| The Pogues featuring Kirsty MacColl || "Fairytale of New York"<sup>[No. 2]</sup>
| || align="center"|— || 2011
|-
| UB40||"Red Red Wine"
| ||align="center"|— || 2014
|-
| Journey||"Don't Stop Believin'"<sup>[No. 62]</sup>
| ||align="center"|— || 2014
|-
| Kylie Minogue & Jason Donovan||"Especially for You"
| ||align="center"|— || 2014
|}
Additional information
<sup>[No. 2]</sup>: The singles "Ghostbusters" and "Fairytale of New York" peaked at number two in the UK singles chart. "Last Christmas" peaked at number two upon its original release, but eventually reached number one in 2021.
<sup>[No. 3]</sup>: "Blue Monday" was originally released as a 12" single in 1983, where it peaked at number 9 in the UK singles chart. It was re-released in 7" format in 1988 as "Blue Monday 1988" where it reached a higher peak of number 3. It has also been re-released on other occasions, most notably 1995. New Order's label, Factory Records, were not a member of the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) so they never received any sales certifications. However, "Blue Monday" sold more than one million units through combined sales total.
<sup>[No. 62]</sup>: "Don't Stop Believin'" originally peaked in the UK at number 62 in 1982, but reached number 6 in 2010 following performances on The X Factor.
Notes
References
Further reading
- Davis, Sharon. 80s Chart Toppers: Every Chart-Topper Tells a Story. Edinburgh: Mainstream Publishing, 1999 , 462p.
External links
- Archive of all UK Number One Singles of the 1980s with images of original packaging