UPDATE (Aug. 30): “Rein Me In” by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean logs its 23rd nonconsecutive week at No. 1 on the U.K.’s Official Singles Chart on the tally that was published on Friday (Aug. 28). The song hasn’t been nearly as big a hit in the U.S., though it isn’t done yet. It jumps from No. 50 to No. 45 in its 22nd week on the Billboard Hot 100 dated Aug. 29, its highest ranking to date.
“Rein Me In” is the first single to log 23 weeks at No. 1 in the U.K., but it has yet to reach the top 10 (or even the top 40) on the Hot 100. In the 68 years that the Hot 100 has been in place, music fans in the U.S. and the U.K. have never been so far apart in their reactions to a song.
Here’s an essay on how “Rein Me In” became the U.K.’s longest-running No. 1 single ever. And here’s a look at the song that previously held the record, Frankie Laine‘s “I Believe.”
PREVIOUSLY (April 23): Music fans in the United States and the United Kingdom often agree on big hits. Six songs have logged 10 or more weeks at No. 1 on both the Billboard Hot 100, the flagship chart for success in the U.S., and the Official Singles Chart in the U.K. Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You” from The Bodyguard (1992-93) became the first song to reach double digits in weeks at No. 1 on both sides of the Atlantic. Alex Warren’s “Ordinary” (2025) marked the most recent.
In between those two megahits, four other singles achieved the feat: Drake‘s “One Dance,” featuring WizKid & Kyla (2016), Ed Sheeran’s “Shape of You” (2017), Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee‘s “Despacito,” featuring Justin Bieber (2017) and Harry Styles’ “As It Was” (2022).
But music fans in our two countries don’t always agree. “Rein Me In” by Sam Fender and Olivia Dean is currently in its eighth week at No. 1 on the Official Singles Chart in the U.K., but it hasn’t broken through in nearly the same way on the Hot 100. This week, it drops from its No. 64 high point to No. 73. Part of the problem is that two other Dean hits simply refuse to yield: “Man I Need” (which holds at its No. 2 peak) and “So Easy (to Fall in Love)” (which keeps at its No. 6 high). Both are catchier and closer to the core sound in pop music right now. And while Fender is an established star in the U.K., with four top 10 hits, this is his first Hot 100 hit.
“Rein Me In” is the ninth song since 1958 (when the Hot 100 originated) to log eight or more weeks at No. 1 on the Official Singles Chart in the U.K. but fall short of the top 10 on the Hot 100.
Here’s a complete list of those songs, in chronological order:
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The Shadows, “Wonderful Land” (1962)
U.K. peak: No. 1 for eight weeks
Hot 100 peak: didn’t chart
Producer: Norrie Paramor
Notes: The Shadows were the backing band for British pop idol Cliff Richard. Their first two No. 1 hits in the U.K. were collabs with Richard – “Living Doll” and “Travellin’ Light.” (They were billed as The Drifters on “Living Doll” in 1959 but subsequently changed their name to The Shadows to avoid confusion with the great American R&B group.) Their only songs to make the Hot 100 were “Living Doll” (No. 30 in 1959) and another collab with Richard, “Bachelor Boy” (No. 99 in 1964).
“Wonderful Land” had the longest run at No. 1 in the U.K. of any instrumental hit. It was the second song from the 1960s to top the U.K. chart for eight weeks, following Elvis Presley’s “It’s Now or Never.” (The feat was later equaled by a third ’60s hit, The Archies’ “Sugar, Sugar.”) “Wonderful Land” failed to crack the Hot 100 even though instrumentals were hot at the time. Three instrumentals topped the Hot 100 in 1962: Mr. Acker Bilk’s “Stranger on the Shore,” David Rose’s “The Stripper” and The Tornadoes’ “Telstar.”
Listen here
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Wings, “Mull of Kintyre”/“Girls’ School” (1977)
U.K. peak: No. 1 for nine weeks
Hot 100 peak: No. 33 (“Girls’ School”)
Producer: Paul McCartney (both songs)
Notes: This double A-sided single was Wings’ biggest hit in Britain and is one of the best-selling singles of all time in the U.K. It was McCartney’s first No. 1 in his home country since The Beatles disbanded. It was the second song to top the U.K. chart for nine weeks in the 1970s, following Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody.” (The feat was later matched by a third ’70s smash: John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John’s “You’re the One That I Want” from Grease.) In the U.S., “Girls’ School” (with “Mull” on the B-side) peaked at No. 33. For Wings at that time, that was a disappointing showing. Wings had made the top 10 on the Hot 100 earlier in 1977 with a belated single release of “Maybe I’m Amazed.” “With a Little Luck,” their very next single following “Girls’ School,” brought the group back to No. 1.
Paul McCartney and Denny Laine co-wrote the gentle ballad “Mull of Kintyre” as a tribute to the idyllic area in southwest Scotland where McCartney has owned High Park Farm since 1966. “I certainly loved Scotland enough, so I came up with a song about where we were living: an area called Mull of Kintyre,” he explained in a book that accompanied his 2001 compilation Wingspan: Hits and History. “It was a love song really, about how I enjoyed being there and imagining I was travelling away and wanting to get back there.” The song featured Great Highland bagpipes played by the Campbeltown Pipe Band. It was recorded on Aug. 9, 1977, during a break in recording the forthcoming London Town album. Neither “Mull” nor “Girls’ School” was included on London Town, but both songs were added to the 1993 CD reissue.
Listen to “Mull of Kintyre” here
Listen to “Girls’ School” here
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Frankie Goes to Hollywood, “Two Tribes” (1984)
U.K. peak: No. 1 for nine weeks
Hot 100 peak: No. 43
Producer: Trevor Horn
Notes: “Two Tribes” is an anti-war song with a nihilistic lyric expressing enthusiasm for nuclear war. The single was a phenomenal success in the U.K., boosted by multiple remixes. It entered the Official Singles Chart on June 10, 1984, at No. 1, where it remained for nine consecutive weeks, during which time the group’s previous single “Relax” (which had logged five weeks at No. 1) climbed back to No. 2. “Two Tribes” was the longest-running No. 1 in the U.K. of the 1980s. “Relax” made the top 10 on the Hot 100, and Frankie Goes to Hollywood received a Grammy nod for best new artist, but “Two Tribes” didn’t do nearly as well.
Fun Fact: Frankie Goes to Hollywood drew its name from publicity recounting Frank Sinatra’s move into the movie industry.
Listen here
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Wet Wet Wet, “Love Is All Around” (1994)
UK peak: No. 1 for 15 weeks
Hot 100 peak: No. 41
Producer: Wet Wet Wet
Notes: The Scottish group recorded this cover version of The Troggs’ 1968 hit “Love Is All Around” for the 1994 film Four Weddings and a Funeral, which starred Hugh Grant and Andie MacDowell. It’s the longest-running No. 1 in U.K. chart history by an ongoing group or duo. “Love Is All Around” reached No. 8 on Billboard’s Adult Contemporary radio chart. Four Weddings was a big hit on both sides of the Atlantic and even received an Oscar nod for best picture (back when there were only five nominees in the category and landing a spot was twice as hard to do as it is today, with 10 nominees in the category).
Listen here
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Calvin Harris & Dua Lipa, “One Kiss” (2018)
U.K. peak: No. 1 for eight weeks
Hot 100 peak: No. 26
Producer: Calvin Harris
Notes: “One Kiss” was written by Harris and Lipa alongside Canadian singer/songwriter Jessie Reyez. Critics praised the throwback sound of “One Kiss,” as well as its summertime aesthetic. The song spent eight weeks atop the U.K. singles chart. In the U.S., it reached No. 9 on the Mainstream Top 40 chart, but didn’t even come especially close to the top 10 on the Hot 100. Lipa performed the song at the 2019 Grammy Awards on Feb. 10, 2019, where she was crowned best new artist. Ten days later, she and Harris performed it together at the Brit Awards, where it won British single of the year.
Listen here
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LF System, “Afraid To Feel” (2022)
U.K. peak: No. 1 for eight weeks
Hot 100 peak: didn’t chart
Producer: LF System
Notes: This was the first (and to date, only) U.K. chart entry for LF SYSTEM, a production duo consisting of Scottish DJs Conor Larkman and Sean Finnigan. The recording samples Silk’s 1979 song “I Can’t Stop (Turning You On),” which spent a few weeks on Billboard‘s Hot Soul Singles chart, as it was known at the time. (That disco studio group from Philadelphia is not to be confused with the Georgia-based R&B group of the same name which topped the Hot 100 in 1993 with “Freak Me.”)
Listen here
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Calvin Harris and Ellie Goulding, “Miracle” (2023)
U.K. peak: No. 1 for eight weeks
Hot 100 peak: didn’t chart
Producers: Calvin Harris, Matthew Burns
Notes: Inspired by Eurodance and techno, “Miracle” became Harris’ 11th No. 1 hit as an artist in the U.K.; Goulding’s fourth. It was nominated for best pop dance recording at the 2024 Grammy Awards and for song of the year at the 2024 Brit Awards.
Listen here
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Dave & Central Cee, “Sprinter” (2023)
U.K. peak: No. 1 for 10 weeks
Hot 100 peak: didn’t chart (No. 2 on Bubbling Under)
Producers: Jonny Leslie, Phoebe Stephens, Jo Caleb, Santan, Jim Legxacy, TR, Kyle Evans
Notes: “Sprinter” is a collab by British rappers Dave and Central Cee. It debuted at No. 1 on the U.K. Singles chart, becoming Dave’s third No. 1 and Central Cee’s first. With 10 weeks at No. 1, it became the longest-running No. 1 rap song ever in the U.K.
Listen here
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Sam Fender and Olivia Dean, “Rein Me In” (2026)
U.K. peak: No. 1 for 23 weeks
Hot 100 peak: No. 45 (so far)
Producers: Sam Fender/Markus Dravs with additional production by Adam Granducial, Joe Atkinson and Dean Thompson
Notes: “Rein Me In” first appeared as a solo recording in February 2025 on Fender’s third studio album, People Watching. A remix featuring Dean was released in June 2025. Fender said at the time that Dean “added a female perspective to ‘Rein Me In,’ and I think it’s all the better for it.” In the meantime, Dean exploded. Her “Man I Need” topped the U.K. Singles Chart in October 2025. Their remix of “Rein Me In” reached No. 1 on that chart in February 2026, soon after it won the Brit Award for song of the year. It was Fender’s first and Dean’s second U.K. No. 1. The song also became Fender’s first entry on the Hot 100. In the U.S., the collab has reached No. 10 on Hot Rock Songs, which uses the same multimetric methodology as the Hot 100.
Listen here
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