“DAD’S got his arms full of alcohol, mum’s got her eyes full of tears” – all together now...

Oxford Britpop icon Nick Cope has released a controversial bid for the Christmas number one spot with a song about how awful the festive season really can be.

The former Candyskins frontman, now a successful children’s songwriter, has turned the tables on promiscuous aunts, embarrassing uncles and acid reflux.

And despite the adult themes in The Same Old Christmas, the East Oxford resident roped in dozens of young fans from Oxfordshire to sing in the video.

He said: “A bit of controversy is always good and the song is causing a few raised eyebrows.”

Mr Cope, who turns 51 today, recruited children from Witney’s Tower Hill Community Primary School to sing the choruses and shot the video at fans’ houses and the Oxford Story Museum.

He said: “Some of the parents were up in arms about the lyrics and said ‘why is my child singing this?’ and I had to explain the children don’t sing the parts about dad getting drunk, they only sing the choruses.”

The father-of-three who lives with partner Amanda, their whippet Norman and three chickens, admitted: “The controversy has been good. We had quite a few emails from parents and I thought ‘this is quite interesting – I’m not used to this’.”

Mr Cope has written a song that explores the good as well as the bad bits of having relatives pile into your house to exchange badly-thought-out gifts, eat dubious vegetables and get drunk.

He said: “I do like Christmas but I feel everyone has a mixture of emotions about it.

“When you get the family together there are always ructions and people drink too much.

“I just wanted to make people laugh with a bittersweet song about Christmas.”

Mr Cope shot to international fame in the early 90s as frontman of Britpop band the Candyskins, signing to Geffen Records in 1993 and touring the world.

The band broke up in 1998, but six years ago the former teen heart-throb reinvented himself as a children’s songwriter, and now tours the world once again performing for a slightly younger audience.

His website promises: “I always try and keep the parents in mind when I am writing and recording as they are going to have to listen to the songs quite a few times.”

He said he would love The Same Old Christmas to reach number one but admitted he had no idea how many sales he would need to top the charts in 2015.

Mr Cope has also pledged to donate proceeds from download sales to Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital.

Download the song for 99p now at nickcope.co.uk and watch the video below:

SHOW OFF YOUR FESTIVE LIGHTS
Are you joining the Scarrott family in Barton and putting on a fantastic Christmas lights display this year?

We would love to feature your festive displays in the Oxford Mail and on our website. 

Please email news@oxfordmail.co.uk with your photos of your lights or call us on 01865 425500 and we might be able to come along and get photographs.