List of Billboard Hot 100 number-ones by British artists
This is a list of number-one hits by British artists in the United States on the Billboard Hot 100 chart (existent since August 3, 1958). The only British artist to have a pre-Hot 100 number one was Vera Lynn, with "Auf Wiederseh'n Sweetheart" holding the top spot for nine weeks starting from July 12, 1952.
With 20 number-one singles, the current most successful British act on the Billboard Hot 100 is the Beatles. They are followed by George Michael who had ten number 1 singles on the chart (including his duets with Aretha Franklin and Elton John, plus the ones scored with the band Wham!). The Bee Gees and Elton John have nine number-one singles each. The Rolling Stones have had eight number one singles. Sir Paul McCartney is a credited artist on seven US #1s - two more #1s are credited to Wings alone.[1]
Bananarama and the Spice Girls are the only British girl groups to score a number one on the Hot 100. With "Viva la Vida" and "My Universe", Coldplay are the first British group to have a number one in the 21st century, and as of January 2022, the only one.
List of Number ones[]
- N/A represents a single that was not released in the UK, or failed to chart.
- £ represents a single that sold over 1 million copies in the UK.
| Date | Song | Artist(s) | Weeks at number-one | Peak position on UK Singles Chart |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 26, 1962 | "Stranger on the Shore" | Mr. Acker Bilk | 1 | 2£ |
| December 22, 1962 | "Telstar" | The Tornados | 3 | 1 |
| February 1, 1964 | "I Want to Hold Your Hand" | The Beatles | 7 | 1 |
| March 21, 1964 | "She Loves You" | The Beatles | 2 | 1 |
| April 4, 1964 | "Can't Buy Me Love" | The Beatles | 5 | 1 |
| May 30, 1964 | "Love Me Do" | The Beatles | 1 | 4 |
| June 27, 1964 | "A World Without Love" | Peter and Gordon | 1 | 1 |
| August 1, 1964 | "A Hard Day's Night" | The Beatles | 2 | 1 |
| September 5, 1964 | "The House of the Rising Sun" | The Animals | 3 | 1 |
| October 17, 1964 | "Do Wah Diddy Diddy" | Manfred Mann | 2 | 1 |
| December 26, 1964 | "I Feel Fine" | The Beatles | 3 | 1£ |
| January 23, 1965 | "Downtown" | Petula Clark | 2 | 2 |
| March 13, 1965 | "Eight Days a Week" | The Beatles | 2 | N/A |
| April 10, 1965 | "I'm Telling You Now" | Freddie and the Dreamers | 2 | 2 |
| April 24, 1965 | "Game of Love" | Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders | 1 | 2 |
| May 1, 1965 | "Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Daughter" | Herman's Hermits | 3 | N/A |
| May 22, 1965 | "Ticket to Ride" | The Beatles | 1 | 1 |
| July 10, 1965 | "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" | The Rolling Stones | 4 | 1 |
| August 7, 1965 | "I'm Henry VIII, I Am" | Herman's Hermits | 1 | N/A |
| September 4, 1965 | "Help!" | The Beatles | 3 | 1 |
| October 9, 1965 | "Yesterday" | The Beatles | 4 | 8 |
| November 6, 1965 | "Get Off of My Cloud" | The Rolling Stones | 2 | 1 |
| December 25, 1965 | "Over and Over" | The Dave Clark Five | 1 | 45 |
| January 8, 1966 | "We Can Work It Out" | The Beatles | 3 (2 runs) | 1£ |
| February 5, 1966 | "My Love" | Petula Clark | 2 | 4 |
| June 11, 1966 | "Paint It Black" | The Rolling Stones | 2 | 1 |
| June 25, 1966 | "Paperback Writer" | The Beatles | 2 (2 runs) | 1 |
| July 30, 1966 | "Wild Thing" | The Troggs | 2 | 2 |
| September 3, 1966 | "Sunshine Superman" | Donovan | 1 | 2 |
| December 3, 1966 | "Winchester Cathedral" | The New Vaudeville Band | 3 (2 runs) | 4 |
| March 4, 1967 | "Ruby Tuesday" | The Rolling Stones | 1 | 3 |
| March 18, 1967 | "Penny Lane" | The Beatles | 1 | 2 |
| August 19, 1967 | "All You Need Is Love" | The Beatles | 1 | 1 |
| October 21, 1967 | "To Sir, with Love" | Lulu | 5 | N/A |
| December 30, 1967 | "Hello, Goodbye" | The Beatles | 3 | 1 |
| September 28, 1968 | "Hey Jude" | The Beatles | 9 | 1 |
| May 24, 1969 | "Get Back" | The Beatles with Billy Preston |
5 | 1[1] |
| August 23, 1969 | "Honky Tonk Women" | The Rolling Stones | 4 | 1 |
| November 29, 1969 | "Come Together" / "Something" | The Beatles | 1 | 4 |
| April 11, 1970 | "Let It Be" | The Beatles | 2 | 2 |
| June 13, 1970 | "The Long and Winding Road" / "For You Blue" | The Beatles | 2 | N/A |
| December 26, 1970 | "My Sweet Lord" / "Isn't It a Pity" | George Harrison | 4 | 1 |
| May 29, 1971 | "Brown Sugar" | The Rolling Stones | 2 | 2 |
| August 7, 1971 | "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart?" | Bee Gees | 4 | N/A[2] |
| September 4, 1971 | "Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey" | Paul McCartney and Linda McCartney |
1 | N/A[3] |
| October 2, 1971 | "Maggie May" / "Reason to Believe" | Rod Stewart | 5 | 1 |
| March 25, 1972 | "A Horse with No Name" | America | 3 | 3[4] |
| February 3, 1973 | "Crocodile Rock" | Elton John | 3 | 5 |
| June 2, 1973 | "My Love" | Paul McCartney and Wings | 4 | 9 |
| June 30, 1973 | "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)" | George Harrison | 1 | 8 |
| October 20, 1973 | "Angie" | The Rolling Stones | 1 | 5 |
| November 24, 1973 | "Photograph" | Ringo Starr | 1 | 8 |
| January 26, 1974 | "You're Sixteen" | Ringo Starr | 1 | 4 |
| April 13, 1974 | "Bennie and the Jets" | Elton John | 1 | 37 |
| June 8, 1974 | "Band on the Run" | Paul McCartney and Wings | 1 | 3 |
| August 17, 1974 | "The Night Chicago Died" | Paper Lace | 1 | 3 |
| September 14, 1974 | "I Shot the Sheriff" | Eric Clapton | 1 | 9 |
| November 16, 1974 | "Whatever Gets You thru the Night" | John Lennon | 1 | 36 |
| January 4, 1975 | "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" | Elton John | 2 | 10 |
| February 22, 1975 | "Pick Up the Pieces" | Average White Band | 1 | 6 |
| April 12, 1975 | "Philadelphia Freedom" | The Elton John Band | 2 | 12 |
| June 14, 1975 | "Sister Golden Hair" | America | 1 | N/A |
| July 19, 1975 | "Listen to What the Man Said" | Paul McCartney and Wings | 1 | 6 |
| August 9, 1975 | "Jive Talkin'" | Bee Gees | 2 | 5 |
| September 20, 1975 | "Fame" | David Bowie | 2 (2 runs) | 17 |
| November 1, 1975 | "Island Girl" | Elton John | 3 | 14 |
| January 3, 1976 | "Saturday Night" | Bay City Rollers | 1 | N/A |
| May 22, 1976 | "Silly Love Songs" | Wings | 5 (2 runs) | 2 |
| August 7, 1976 | "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" | Elton John and Kiki Dee | 4 | 1 |
| September 4, 1976 | "You Should Be Dancing" | Bee Gees | 1 | 5 |
| November 13, 1976 | "Tonight's the Night (Gonna Be Alright)" | Rod Stewart | 8 | 5 |
| January 15, 1977 | "You Make Me Feel Like Dancing" | Leo Sayer | 1 | 2 |
| February 19, 1977 | "Blinded by the Light" | Manfred Mann's Earth Band | 1 | 6 |
| May 14, 1977 | "When I Need You" | Leo Sayer | 1 | 1 |
| June 18, 1977 | "Dreams" | Fleetwood Mac | 1 | 24[5] |
| July 30, 1977 | "I Just Want to Be Your Everything" | Andy Gibb | 4 (2 runs) | 26[6] |
| December 24, 1977 | "How Deep Is Your Love" | Bee Gees | 3 | 3 |
| February 4, 1978 | "Stayin' Alive" | Bee Gees | 4 | 4 |
| March 4, 1978 | "(Love Is) Thicker Than Water" | Andy Gibb | 2 | N/A |
| March 18, 1978 | "Night Fever" | Bee Gees | 8 | 1 |
| May 20, 1978 | "With a Little Luck" | Wings | 2 | 5 |
| June 17, 1978 | "Shadow Dancing" | Andy Gibb | 7 | 42 |
| August 5, 1978 | "Miss You" | The Rolling Stones | 1 | 3 |
| January 6, 1979 | "Too Much Heaven" | Bee Gees | 2 | 3 |
| February 10, 1979 | "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?" | Rod Stewart | 4 | 1 |
| March 24, 1979 | "Tragedy" | Bee Gees | 2 | 1 |
| June 9, 1979 | "Love You Inside Out" | Bee Gees | 1 | 13 |
| November 3, 1979 | "Pop Muzik" | M | 1 | 2 |
| February 23, 1980 | "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" | Queen | 4 | 2 |
| March 22, 1980 | "Another Brick in the Wall (Part II)" | Pink Floyd | 4 | 1£ |
| June 28, 1980 | "Coming Up" | Paul McCartney | 3 | 2 |
| October 4, 1980 | "Another One Bites the Dust" | Queen | 3 | 7 |
| December 27, 1980 | "(Just Like) Starting Over" | John Lennon | 5 | 1 |
| May 2, 1981 | "Morning Train (Nine to Five)" | Sheena Easton | 2 | 3 |
| July 25, 1981 | "The One That You Love" | Air Supply | 1 | N/A [7] |
| May 15, 1982 | "Ebony and Ivory" | Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder |
7 | 1 [8] |
| July 3, 1982 | "Don't You Want Me" | The Human League | 3 | 1£ |
| November 6, 1982 | "Up Where We Belong" | Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes |
3 | 7 [9] |
| April 23, 1983 | "Come On Eileen" | Dexys Midnight Runners | 1 | 1£ |
| May 21, 1983 | "Let's Dance" | David Bowie | 1 | 1 |
| July 9, 1983 | "Every Breath You Take" | The Police | 8 | 1 [10] |
| September 3, 1983 | "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" | Eurythmics | 1 | 2 |
| October 1, 1983 | "Total Eclipse of the Heart" | Bonnie Tyler | 4 | 1 |
| December 10, 1983 | "Say Say Say" | Paul McCartneyand Michael Jackson |
6 | 2 [11] |
| January 21, 1984 | "Owner of a Lonely Heart" | Yes | 2 | 9 |
| February 4, 1984 | "Karma Chameleon" | Culture Club | 3 | 1£ |
| April 21, 1984 | "Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)" | Phil Collins | 3 | 2 |
| June 23, 1984 | "The Reflex" | Duran Duran | 2 | 1 |
| September 22, 1984 | "Missing You" | John Waite | 1 | 9 |
| November 3, 1984 | "Caribbean Queen" | Billy Ocean | 2 | 6 |
| November 17, 1984 | "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" | Wham! | 3 | 1 |
| February 2, 1985 | "I Want to Know What Love Is" | Foreigner | 2 | 1 [12] |
| February 16, 1985 | "Careless Whisper" | George Michael | 3 | 1£ |
| March 30, 1985 | "One More Night" | Phil Collins | 2 | 4 |
| May 18, 1985 | "Don't You (Forget About Me)" | Simple Minds | 1 | 7 |
| May 25, 1985 | "Everything She Wants" | Wham! | 2 | 2£ |
| June 8, 1985 | "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" | Tears for Fears | 2 | 2 |
| July 6, 1985 | "Sussudio" | Phil Collins | 1 | 12 |
| July 13, 1985 | "A View to a Kill" | Duran Duran | 2 | 2 |
| July 27, 1985 | "Everytime You Go Away" | Paul Young | 1 | 4 |
| August 3, 1985 | "Shout" | Tears for Fears | 3 | 4 |
| September 7, 1985 | "St. Elmo's Fire (Man in Motion)" | John Parr | 2 | 6 |
| September 21, 1985 | "Money for Nothing" | Dire Straits | 3 | 4 |
| November 30, 1985 | "Separate Lives" | Phil Collins and Marilyn Martin |
1 | 4 [13] |
| January 18, 1986 | "That's What Friends Are For" | Dionne and Friends (Elton John) |
4 | 16[14] |
| May 3, 1986 | "Addicted to Love" | Robert Palmer | 1 | 5 |
| May 10, 1986 | "West End Girls" | Pet Shop Boys | 1 | 1 |
| July 5, 1986 | "There'll Be Sad Songs (To Make You Cry)" | Billy Ocean | 1 | 12 |
| July 12, 1986 | "Holding Back the Years" | Simply Red | 1 | 2 |
| July 19, 1986 | "Invisible Touch" | Genesis | 1 | 15 |
| July 26, 1986 | "Sledgehammer" | Peter Gabriel | 1 | 4 |
| August 30, 1986 | "Higher Love" | Steve Winwood | 1 | 13 |
| September 6, 1986 | "Venus" | Bananarama | 1 | 8 |
| November 22, 1986 | "Human" | The Human League | 1 | 8 |
| April 18, 1987 | "I Knew You Were Waiting (for Me)" | Aretha Franklin and George Michael |
2 | 1[15] |
| May 2, 1987 | "(I Just) Died In Your Arms" | Cutting Crew | 2 | 4 |
| June 6, 1987 | "You Keep Me Hangin' On" | Kim Wilde | 1 | 2 |
| October 10, 1987 | "Here I Go Again" | Whitesnake | 1 | 9 |
| November 21, 1987 | "Mony Mony "Live"" | Billy Idol | 1 | 7 |
| December 12, 1987 | "Faith" | George Michael | 4 | 2 |
| January 16, 1988 | "Got My Mind Set on You" | George Harrison | 1 | 2 |
| February 27, 1988 | "Father Figure" | George Michael | 2 | 11 |
| March 12, 1988 | "Never Gonna Give You Up" | Rick Astley | 2 | 1 |
| April 9, 1988 | "Get Outta My Dreams, Get into My Car" | Billy Ocean | 1 | 3 |
| May 28, 1988 | "One More Try" | George Michael | 3 | 8 |
| June 18, 1988 | "Together Forever" | Rick Astley | 1 | 1 |
| July 30, 1988 | "Roll with It" | Steve Winwood | 4 | 53 |
| August 27, 1988 | "Monkey" | George Michael | 2 | 13 |
| October 8, 1988 | "Love Bites" | Def Leppard | 1 | 11 |
| October 15, 1988 | "Red Red Wine" | UB40 | 1 | 1 |
| October 22, 1988 | "Groovy Kind of Love" | Phil Collins | 2 | 1 |
| November 12, 1988 | "Wild, Wild West" | Escape Club | 1 | N/A |
| January 21, 1989 | "Two Hearts" | Phil Collins | 2 | 6 |
| March 25, 1989 | "The Living Years" | Mike + The Mechanics | 1 | 2 |
| April 15, 1989 | "She Drives Me Crazy" | Fine Young Cannibals | 1 | 5 |
| July 8, 1989 | "Good Thing" | Fine Young Cannibals | 1 | 7 |
| July 15, 1989 | "If You Don't Know Me by Now" | Simply Red | 1 | 2 |
| December 23, 1989 | Another Day in Paradise | Phil Collins | 4 | 4 |
| October 6, 1990 | "Close to You" | Maxi Priest | 1 | 7 |
| October 13, 1990 | "Praying for Time" | George Michael | 1 | 6 |
| April 13, 1991 | "I've Been Thinking About You" | Londonbeat | 1 | 2 |
| July 20, 1991 | "Unbelievable" | EMF | 1 | 3 |
| February 1, 1992 | "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" | George Michael and Elton John | 1 | 1 |
| February 8, 1992 | "I'm Too Sexy" | Right Said Fred | 3 | 2 |
| July 24, 1993 | "Can't Help Falling in Love" | UB40 | 7 | 1 |
| January 22, 1994 | "All For Love" | Bryan Adams/ Rod Stewart/ Sting |
3 | 2 [16] |
| August 26, 1995 | "Kiss from a Rose" | Seal | 1 | 4 |
| February 22, 1997 | "Wannabe" | Spice Girls | 4 | 1£ |
| October 11, 1997 | "Candle in the Wind 1997" / "Something About the Way You Look Tonight" |
Elton John | 14 | 1£ |
| March 11, 2006 | "You're Beautiful" | James Blunt | 1 | 1 |
| March 27, 2008 | "Bleeding Love" | Leona Lewis | 4 (3 runs) | 1 |
| June 28, 2008 | "Viva la Vida" | Coldplay | 1 | 1 |
| October 17, 2009 | "Down" (feat. Lil Wayne) | Jay Sean | 2 (2 runs) | 3 [17] |
| March 20, 2010 | "Break Your Heart" (feat. Ludacris) | Taio Cruz | 1 | 1 [18] |
| May 21, 2011 | "Rolling in the Deep" | Adele | 7 | 2£ |
| July 16, 2011 | "Party Rock Anthem" | LMFAO featuring Lauren Bennett and GoonRock |
6 | 1£ [19] |
| September 17, 2011 | "Someone Like You" | Adele | 5 (2 runs) | 1£ |
| November 12, 2011 | "We Found Love" | Rihanna featuring Calvin Harris |
10 | 1£ [20] |
| February 4, 2012 | "Set Fire to the Rain" | Adele | 2 | 11 |
| June 7, 2014 | "Fancy" | Iggy Azalea featuring Charli XCX |
7 | 5[21] |
| January 17, 2015 | "Uptown Funk" | Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars |
14 | 1£ [22] |
| November 14, 2015 | "Hello" | Adele | 10 | 1£ |
| February 20, 2016 | "Pillowtalk" | Zayn | 1 | 1 |
| May 21, 2016 | "One Dance" | Drake featuring Wizkid and Kyla |
10 (2 runs) | 1 |
| January 28, 2017 | "Shape of You" | Ed Sheeran | 12 (2 runs) | 1 |
| December 23, 2017 | "Perfect" | Ed Sheeran and Beyoncé |
6 | 1 |
| November 2, 2019 | "Someone You Loved" | Lewis Capaldi | 3 (2 runs) | 1 |
| August 15, 2020 | "Watermelon Sugar" | Harry Styles | 1 | 4 |
| October 10, 2020 | "Franchise" | Travis Scott featuring Young Thug and M.I.A. |
1 | 26 |
| October 9, 2021 | "My Universe" | Coldplay and BTS |
1 | 3 |
| October 30, 2021 | "Easy on Me" | Adele | 10 (3 runs) | 1 |
See also[]
- List of Billboard Hot 100 number-ones by Australian artists
- List of Billboard Hot 100 number-ones by Canadian artists
- List of Billboard Hot 100 number-ones by European artists
- British Invasion
- British soul
Notes[]
- ^ Billy Preston was American The Beatles are British.
- ^ The Bee Gees were born on the Isle of Man, a Crown dependency that is not part of the UK, and moved to the UK proper in their early childhood, but moved to Australia later in their childhood and resided there for eight years before moving back to the UK.
- ^ Linda McCartney was American. It is unknown whether she chose to become a British national too.
- ^ America formed in England and moved to the United States shortly after their fame; their members are children of American servicemen stationed there and have dual UK/US citizenship, 2 of whom were American-born.
- ^ Mick Fleetwood, John McVie and Christine McVie are British, Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham are American.
- ^ Andy Gibb was the brother of the Bee Gees. He was born in the UK proper, but moved with the rest of his family to Australia as an infant, grew up mainly in Australia, and lived in the US for most of his recording career.
- ^ Graham Russell of Air Supply was born in Britain, but is now an Australian citizen, while Russell Hitchcock is Australian.
- ^ Paul McCartney is British, Stevie Wonder is American.
- ^ Joe Cocker was British, Jennifer Warnes is American.
- ^ The Police were Britons Sting and Andy Summers, and American Stewart Copeland.
- ^ Paul McCartney is British, Michael Jackson was American.
- ^ Mick Jones, Ian McDonald (founding members) and Dennis Elliott are British, Lou Gramm, Al Greenwood and Ed Gagliardi are American.
- ^ Phil Collins is British, Marilyn Martin is American.
- ^ Dionne and Friends are Americans Dionne Warwick, Stevie Wonder and Gladys Knight, and Briton Elton John.
- ^ George Michael was British, Aretha Franklin was American.
- ^ Rod Stewart and Sting are British, Bryan Adams is Canadian.
- ^ Jay Sean is British, Lil Wayne is American.
- ^ Taio Cruz is British, Ludacris is American.
- ^ Lauren Bennett is British and a featured artist, LMFAO and GoonRock are American.
- ^ Calvin Harris is British and is a featured artist, Rihanna is Barbadian.
- ^ Iggy Azalea was born in Australia, but now lives in the United States, while Charli XCX is British.
- ^ Mark Ronson is British, Bruno Mars is American.
References[]
- ^ Bronson, F. (2003) The Billboard Book of Number 1 Hits" Billboard Books. p. 936
Categories:
- Lists of Billboard Hot 100 number-one songs
- British music-related lists