It's 40 years today since the hit track Do They Know It’s Christmas? was recorded
The song, which was aimed at raising cash for famine-hit Ethiopians, was the brainchild of singers Bob Geldof and Midge Ure, who formed supergroup Band Aid to perform it.
It became Christmas No1 in 1984, sold more than 12million copies and inspired other versions, including the new, remixed Band Aid 40. James Moore looks at what happened to the original stars…
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Bob Geldof: The Irish singer – who found fame with The Boomtown Rats – went on to organise Live Aid and Live 8. He married TV star Paula Yates and they had three girls before divorcing. He is now 73 and wed to actress Jeanne Marine. His daughter Peaches died in 2014, aged 25.
U2: The Irish band would go on to sell 25million copies of hit album The Joshua Tree. Singer Bono, now 64, continued his activism and is married to Ali, 63, with four children including Eve Hewson, star of TV’s The Perfect Couple. Guitarist Adam Clayton, who also featured in the song, is 64.
Phil Collins: The Genesis drummer and singer continued to have solo hits like Easy Lover and starred in 1988 movie Buster. Divorced three times, he’s a dad to five including Lily Collins, star of TV’s Emily in Paris. Now 73, health problems led him to quit performing live.
Sting: Already a huge star with the Police, he successfully went solo and has since sold over 100million records. A dad of six, the yoga-loving 73-year-old is married to second wife Trudie Styler, 70.
Culture Club: Having scored hits like Karma Chameleon, Boy George, now 63, later battled drug problems and was also jailed for assault. He has since starred on TV’s I’m A Celeb. His bandmate and ex-love interest Jon Moss, who also featured, is 67.
George Michael: The Wham! singer split from bandmate Andrew Ridgeley in 1986 and went on to major solo success. He came out as gay in 1998. George sadly died, aged 53, from heart disease in 2016. Wham! song Last Christmas finally got to No1 in 2023.
Bananarama: Pop trio Sara Dallin, Siobhan Fahey and Keren Woodward went on to score hits like Love In The First Degree. Fahey, now 66, left in 1988 to form Shakespears Sister, having married Eurythmics’ Dave Stewart. The couple divorced in 1996. Dallin is now 62 and Woodward, who dated Andrew Ridgeley for 25 years, is 63.
Duran Duran: Simon Le Bon, Nick Rhodes, Andy Taylor, John Taylor and Roger Taylor added to their hits with songs like 007 track A View To A Kill. The Taylors left the band but later rejoined. Singer Le Bon, now 66, has three kids with model wife Yasmin, 60.
Ultravox: Vienna singer Midge Ure, 71, co-wrote Do They Know It’s Christmas? He went solo, before reforming the band. Now 71, the dad of four is a recovering alcoholic. Guitarist Chris Cross died, aged 71, in March.
Spandau Ballet : The True hit-makers broke up in 1990, when guitarists Gary, now 65, and Martin Kemp, 63, also starred in The Krays movie. Martin, who wed singer Shirlie, went on Celebrity Big Brother and is dad to TV’s Roman. Twice-wed singer Tony Hadley, 64, starred on I’m A Celeb in 2015.
Status Quo: They carried on rocking. Singer Francis Rossi, 75, quit his cocaine habit and had eight children from two marriages. Rick Parfitt, known for boozing and drug use, suffered heart problems. Married three times, the dad of four died in 2016, aged 68.
Kool & The Gang: Three members of the US R&B band joined Band Aid –Robert “Kool” Bell, now 74, James J.T. Taylor, 71, and Dennis Thomas. They went on to have hits like Joanna. Thomas died in 2021, aged 70.
Heaven 17: The synth-pop band had one more hit with Temptation, but never achieved the same chart success again. Martyn Ware, now 68, and Glenn Gregory, 66, still perform and pen soundtracks.
Paul Young: The Wherever I Lay My Hat chart-topper had many more hits. Now 68 and a dad-of-three, he recently married partner Lorna. His first wife, Stacey, died from brain cancer in 2018, aged 52.
Paul Weller: The ex-Jam and Style Council star, dubbed the “Modfather”, launched a successful solo career and bagged a million sales with his album Stanley Road. He’s now 66 and a dad of eight.
Marilyn: The singer, whose real name is Peter Robinson, battled years of drug addiction and his star quickly faded. Now 62, he recently released a new single.
Jody Watley: The US singer and ex-Shalamar star briefly dated Duran Duran’s John Taylor after the recording, before returning to the US for a solo career. She’s now a 65-year-old mum of two.
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