London (AFP) – Having fought a titanic political contest for three years over Brexit, Britain’s “leavers” and “remainers” are now doing battle in the pop charts on the eve of their EU departure.
While they may have lost the war, pro-EU remainers believe they can win the battle by sending the bloc’s anthem “Ode to Joy” to Number 1 in the singles chart, to be revealed at 1645 GMT on Brexit day.
The piece from Beethoven’s ninth symphony is performed by the Johann Strauss Orchestra, led by Dutch conductor Andre Rieu, and has shot to the top of the country’s iTunes download chart.
But Brexiteers are hoping that their rather more profane contender, “17 Million Fuck-Offs” by comedian Dominic Frisby, will put the icing on the cake and take the top spot.
Britain opted to leave the EU by a margin of 17.4 million to 16.1 million votes in the seismic 2016 referendum.
The novelty pro-Brexit song, which takes aim at the Brussels and London establishments as well as pro-EU celebrities, has been updated from its original version to include a new verse celebrating Britain finally departing.
It is nonetheless currently lagging at number 3 in the charts, according to the Official Charts Company.