You may not know that the singer of a very popular Christmas classic was from Croydon.
Born in 1959, singer-songwriter Kirsty MacColl was raised in Croydon before achieving global recognition with the Irish Christmas classic “Fairytale of New York”.
She was the daughter of folk singer Ewan MacColl and dancer Jean Newlove.
She attended Park Hill Primary School, Monks Hill Primary School – which is now Quest Academy – and John Newnham High School.
MacColl first gained attention in 1978 when Chiswick Records released an EP by the local punk band The Drug Addix (formerly Tooting Fruities), where she sang backing vocals under the pseudonym Mandy Doubt.
Stiff Records executives weren’t impressed with the band but saw potential in her and signed her to a solo deal.
In 1979, she released her debut solo single “They Don’t Know” which peaked at number two on the Music Week airplay charts.
However, due to the Winter of Discontent strikes in 1979, distributors went on strike, preventing copies of the single from reaching record stores.
As a result, the single failed to make it onto the UK Singles Chart.
Her song “There’s A Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He’s Elvis” reached Number 14 in the UK charts in 1981.
When Stiff Records went bankrupt in 1986, Kirsty MacColl couldn’t record her own music because no other label bought her contract.
However, she kept busy with session work as a backing vocalist, often on tracks produced by her husband, Steve Lillywhite.
MacColl returned to the British charts in December 1987, reaching number 2 with Fairytale of New York, a duet with Shane MacGowan of The Pogues.
She joined The Pogues on their British and European tour in 1988, which she said helped her temporarily overcome stage fright.
In "Fairytale of New York," MacColl plays the female character, a woman involved in a complicated and struggling relationship with the male protagonist, sung by Shane MacGowan, who died last year.
MacColl passed away in 2000, while on holiday in Cozumel, Mexico.
She and her sons were diving at the Chankanaab reef when a powerboat, moving at high speed, entered a restricted area.
As the boat approached, MacColl saw it before her sons did and managed to push her 15-year-old son Jamie out of harm's way.
However, she was struck by the boat, suffering fatal chest and head injuries.
Her death was immediate and her body was returned to the UK, where she was cremated following a service at Mortlake Crematorium.
MacColl died on December 18, just one week before Christmas.
