Fairytale of New York, originally released in 1987 by the Pogues and featuring the late Kirsty MacColl, continues to be one of the greatest Christmas songs around. The Irish folk style ballad featured on If I Should Fall from Grace with God and had originally been penned as a duet between Shane MacGowan and Pogues bassist Cat O’Riordan. But when producer Steve Lillywhite asked his wife Kirsty MacColl to provide a guide vocal demo the outcome was so good that they invited her to take the part on the final recording, and the classic tale of drunken Christmas reverie was complete.