The Beatles legend has addressed witchcraft rumours following his Christmas classic hit
Paul McCartney’s “Wonderful Christmastime” was released on November 16, 1979(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
Sir Paul McCartney says he is “head wizard of a Liverpool coven” as he opened up on the rumours surrounding his Christmas classic song. Conspiracies have been circulating in recent years that his song “Wonderful Christmastime”, which is heard in millions of homes around the world each December, is actually about witchcraft.
Some listeners have taken the lyrics and read into a hidden meaning, questioning if they are actually about people practising witchcraft. Others also considered if Sir Paul was actually a wizard himself.
In the festive hit, he sings: “The mood is right, the spirit’s up, we’re here tonight, and that’s enough”. Sir Paul recently opened up on the rumours and has finally put the theory to bed.
In a video on YouTube titled “The Making Of ‘Wonderful Christmastime’,” a text on-screen says: “There is a theory online that the song is about people practising witchcraft, getting found out and trying to cover it up.”
The Beatles legend joked: “Thank goodness they found me out. This is completely true, and in actual fact, I am the head wizard of a Liverpool coven.”
He added: “Either that…or it’s complete nonsense. And you know it’s the latter!”
Wonderful Christmastime is played out every Christmas as part of a rundown of classic festive tunes which return year after year.
According to Channel 5’s research, the track lands Sir Paul £260,000 per year – and as that research is now nine years old, it is likely to be even higher today.
Paul McCartney, left, and Dave Grohl performing at the Glastonbury Festival in Worthy Farm, June 25, 2022(Image: Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP)
The Beatles legend, 83, recorded Wonderful Christmastime in 1979 at his Lower Gate Farm property in Sussex while working on his second solo album ‘McCartney II’.
It was released in November of that year, shortly after Wings’ final album Back to the Egg hit shelves.
On its original run, Wonderful Christmastime peaked at six in the UK charts and was also a top ten hit in Ireland, Germany, Austria, Latvia and the Netherlands. It was Paul’s first solo single since Eat at Home in 1971 and has since become a staple in Christmas playlists.
According to Magic Radio’s 2024 list UK’s most-streamed Christmas songs, Wonderful Christmastime was the 18th most popular holiday song last year.
That’s just behind his friend John Lennon whose song with The Plastic Ono Band, Merry Xmas (War is Over), came in at number 17.
All I want For Christmas is You was, unsurprisingly, the most streamed Christmas tune, followed by Last Christmas by Wham!, and Fairytale of New York by The Pogues ranking at number three.
Wonderful Christmastime earned a reputation as quite a divisive song despite its success, with many taking against its mellow synth-pop stylings. Whether you consider the song catchy, merry and bright, or dull and repetitive is largely a matter of personal opinion.
Music writer Robert Rodriguez said of the song: “Love it or hate it, few songs within the McCartney oeuvre have provoked such strong reactions.”
Paul played Wonderful Christmastime during the UK gigs of his Got Back tour in December last year, and fans at the Manchester and London shows were largely delighted to hear it.