Following a recent episode of the quiz show Pointless where they asked the contestants to name a UK number one hit with either a Q, X or Z in the title, I had an enquiry about ones that weren’t mentioned as being pointless because of bracketed titles. I was asked by Steve if I can do a comprehensive list and see what the show may, or probably, missed out on. Well Steve, here is the list, nothing much hidden in the Q’s, but interesting to note that both X and Z have 22 each and I bet there were quite a few on the Z’s that weren’t thought of.
| Count | Artist | Title | Year |
Q |
|||
| 1 | Doris Day | Whatever Will Be Will Be (Que Sera Sera) | 1956 |
| 2 | Manfred Mann | Mighty Quinn | 1968 |
| 3 | Abba | Dancing Queen | 1976 |
| 4 | St. Winifred’s School Choir | There’s No One Quite Like Grandma | 1980 |
| 5 | U2 | Discotheque | 1997 |
| 6 | Westlife | Queen of My Heart | 2001 |
X |
|||
| 1 | Tennessee Ernie Ford | Sixteen Tons | 1956 |
| 2 | Craig Douglas | Only Sixteen | 1959 |
| 3 | Cliff Richard and The Shadows | The Next Time | 1963 |
| 4 | Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich | The Legend of Xanadu | 1968 |
| 5 | Zager And Evans | In the Year 2525 (Exordium & Terminus) | 1969 |
| 6 | Slade | Merry Xmas Everybody | 1973 |
| 7 | Rod Stewart | Da ‘Ya’ Think I’m Sexy? | 1978 |
| 8 | Olivia Newton-John & Electric Light Orchestra | Xanadu | 1980 |
| 9 | Frankie Goes to Hollywood | Relax | 1984 |
| 10 | Duran Duran | The Reflex | 1984 |
| 11 | S-Express | Theme From S-Express | 1988 |
| 12 | Color Me Badd | I Wanna Sex You Up | 1991 |
| 13 | Manic Street Preachers | If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next | 1998 |
| 14 | Bob the Builder | Can We Fix It? | 2000 |
| 15 | Britney Spears | Toxic | 2004 |
| 16 | Crazy Frog | Axel F | 2005 |
| 17 | Justin Timberlake | Sexyback | 2006 |
| 18 | Kings of Leon | Sex on Fire | 2008 |
| 19 | David Guetta Featuring Akon | Sexy Chick | 2009 |
| 20 | Little Mix | Shout Out to My Ex | 2016 |
| 21 | Ariana Grande | Thank U Next | 2018 |
| 22 | Jawsh 685 & Jason Derulo | Savage Love (Laxed – Siren Beat) | 2020 |
Z |
|||
| 1 | Perez ‘Prez’ Prado | Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White (Cerezo Rosa) | 1955 |
| 2 | Kay Starr | Rock and Roll Waltz | 1956 |
| 3 | Temperance Seven | You’re Driving Me Crazy | 1961 |
| 4 | Dusty Springfield | You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me (Io Che No Vivo Senza Te) | 1966 |
| 5 | Engelbert Humperdinck | The Last Waltz | 1967 |
| 6 | Tommy Roe | Dizzy | 1969 |
| 7 | Slade | Coz I Luv You | 1971 |
| 8 | Royal Scots Dragoon Guards | Amazing Grace | 1972 |
| 9 | Slade | Mama Weer All Crazee Now | 1972 |
| 10 | Slade | Cum on Feel The Noize | 1973 |
| 11 | Slade | Skweeze Me, Pleeze Me | 1973 |
| 12 | Juliio Iglesias | Begin the Beguine (Volver A Empezar) | 1981 |
| 13 | Vic Reeves & The Wonder Stuff | Dizzy | 1991 |
| 14 | The Shamen | Ebeneezer Goode | 1992 |
| 15 | Madonna | Frozen | 1998 |
| 16 | The Vengaboys | We’re Going to Ibiza | 1999 |
| 17 | Beyonce | Crazy in Love | 2003 |
| 18 | Gnarls Barkley | Crazy | 2006 |
| 19 | Bruno Mars | The Lazy Song | 2011 |
| 20 | Cheryl Cole Feat Tinie Tempah | Crazy Stupid Love | 2014 |
| 21 | Mike Posner | I Took A Pill in Ibiza | 2016 |
| 22 | Eminem Feat Juice Wrld | Godzilla | 2020 |