Michael Jackson’s Thriller has reached a brand-new all-time peak on the UK Singles Chart, surging to number five in the chart week ending November 12. The vintage single, first released in 1984, now sits at its highest placing ever, having scaled a new peak in 2025 and climbed higher still this year, according to Chart Watch.
It is Thriller’s 45th week as a Top 75 single, and the song continues to consolidate its place among the longest-running chart hits in British history. The Halloween season drives the surge every year, but this year’s climb is the biggest yet, with the song landing higher than it has ever managed before.
Halloween takes over the chart
Thriller leads a pack of Halloween songs in the chart. Ghostbusters by Ray Parker Jr sits at number 12, once more its highest chart placing since it peaked at number two first time around in 1984. Monster Mash by Bobby “Boris” Pickett is at number 19, and Tame Impala’s Dracula, which staggered to number 21 on first release a year ago, is now a new addition to the Halloween canon.
Jamie Miller’s Babydoll remains comfortably at number one for a third week in a row, according to Chart Watch, posting a chart sale of just shy of 70,000 units for the second week running. The song’s sale is 80 percent more than its nearest rival, Tate McRae’s Housewife, which has 38,000 units to its name. It is now hard to see Miller’s song being anything other than the final non-festive number-one single of the year.
Christmas is already coming
The Christmas songs are starting their annual climb too. Last Christmas by Wham! sits at number 54 at the start of what Chart Watch calls its annual pilgrimage to the top of the charts, followed by All I Want For Christmas Is You by Mariah Carey at number 82. The festive season has not yet begun in earnest, but the chart is already shifting toward it.
Thriller’s new peak is a reminder of how catalogue songs now behave. A 42-year-old single can reach a new high because streaming lets a new generation discover it every Halloween, and the chart rules count those streams alongside sales. The song’s 45 weeks in the Top 75 put it among the most durable hits in chart history.
Related reading: Babydoll Holds UK No. 1 as Jamie Miller Extends His Run and Olivia Rodrigo Returns to No. 1 as Thriller Hits Highest Since 1984
