Olly Murs teams up with The Ordinary Boys for festive new single ‘Christmas Starts Tonight’: “A small seasonal miracle”

Olly Murs has teamed up with The Ordinary Boys to share a new festive single called ‘Christmas Starts Tonight’ – check it out below.

The track comes on the heels of the singer-songwriter sharing his new album ‘Knees Up’ last month, which contained singles including ‘Save Me’, the ska-inspired ‘Bonkers’, and ‘Run This Town’, which he recently performed on BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing.

Arriving today (Monday December 1), the new festive track comes as a rework of the latter, and sees the former X Factor star put a yuletide spin on the track in time for Christmas. It also sees him continue his long working relationship with Sam Preston from The Ordinary Boys.

“All week been singing ‘Santa Baby’ / Counting days until I get you back in my arms/ tree’s up, stockings on the chimney/ its on its way and I just can’t wait,” Murs sings over the upbeat, anthemic instrumentals, building up towards the chorus. “I’ve been broken and I’ve been working like a dog/ hear the choir sing, the lights are twinkling under the mistletoe and it’s you I’m missing.”

“‘Christmas Starts Tonight’ has had the maddest journey… It began as a demo of ‘Run This Town’ that never quite found its moment,” Murs shared in a new statement.

“Fast forward to 2025 and it ends up on my new album, I perform it on Strictly, and suddenly I’m hearing it as a Christmas song. So I sent Sam a message and somehow we’ve turned it into a full-on festive anthem and properly reconnected in the process.

“It feels fresh, it feels fun, and honestly… I couldn’t be more excited to now have a fully fledged Christmas tune out with The Ordinary Boys.”

Sam Preston continued, saying: “One of the first songs I wrote after The Ordinary Boys was ‘Heart Skips A Beat’. It somehow went on to become a colossal Number One for Olly who, to my amazement, turned out not only to be a gifted singer, performer and songwriter, but also an admirer of The Ordinary Boys.

“We’ve had great fun recording together over the years, and ‘Christmas Starts Tonight’ is no exception. Born from the bones of ‘Run This Town’, a tune that had been languishing in a dusty folder on Olly’s phone for 15 years, it has finally been granted a new life as a Yuletide anthem. A small seasonal miracle, really.”

The new album and latest Christmas single arrive as Murs headed out on a huge tour earlier this year, celebrating 15 years since he kicked off his music career.

Dates included a slot at Radio 2 In The Park, and later this month, the songwriter will be playing one of his last shows of 2025 at London’s O2 Forum Kentish Town on December 8 for an intimate performance. Visit here for any remaining tickets.

‘Christmas Starts Tonight’ faces tough competition if it is looking to reach the Number One Spot on the charts in time for December 25. Also in the running is Kylie Minogue, who is sharing a 10th anniversary reissue of her ‘Kylie Christmas’ album with four brand new tracks. Her new festive dance anthem ‘XMAS’ is looking likely to top the charts, as are classic tracks from Wham!, The Pogues, and Mariah Carey.

Also competing for the prestigious slot are Brian Eno, Celeste, Bastille‘s Dan Smith, Leigh-Anne and more – who have all joined forces for the charity single ‘Lullaby’ – and McFly‘s Tom Fletcher who has recorded a new track for the new Paddington Bear musical.