When it comes to wedding bands, there’s only one that will “I do, I do, I do” ...
For supergroup Abba has topped the list of dance floor fillers with smash hit Dancing Queen crowned the top tune to get guests off chairs and bopping.
It stormed to number one in the charts in 1976 but still has crowd pulling power along with sing-a-long golden oldies Don’t Stop Me Now by Queen and the nation’s adopted football anthem Sweet Caroline by Neil Diamond.
They came second and third respectively on a playlist of wedding songs that Brits can’t resist getting up for.
Abba was the only band or artist to make the top 10 twice with Mamma Mia at number eight.
According to a survey of 2,000 wedding-goers, the “Big Day” top 20 included Whitney Houston’s classic How Will I Know, Single Ladies by Beyonce and the Bee Gees’ Night Fever.
The study by snack brand Jacob’s Mini Cheddars found six in 10 Brits reckon the best wedding playlist has to be cheesy and one in five said dancing the night away was the ideal way to celebrate a close friend or relative tying the knot.
A third felt the speeches were the cringiest part of a wedding but more than a quarter found the just married couple’s first dance was the most awkward moment.
Guests were split on whether the wedding ceremony was better than the evening bash while just over one in 10 named the wedding breakfast as their favourite part.
Leighton Wall, spokesperson for Mini Cheddars’ owner pladis UK&I, said: “Weddings are a great way to let loose, at their heart, they are all about happiness.
“Part of this happiness comes from letting go of inhibitions, hitting the dance floor and fully embracing those ‘guilty pleasures’.
“For some reason, showing emotions and being authentically yourself is seen as somewhat cheesy among many - but we say embrace it, not just at weddings but any time you fancy.”
To mark the research Mini Cheddars has brought together Blue’s Duncan James and Claire Richards, from Steps as the ultimate wedding singers to perform for one night only for one lucky pair of newly weds who win a competition on Instagram.
Popstar Duncan, 44, whose hit One Love with Blue hovered just outside the wedding playlist top 20 at number 22 said: “It can be hard to reach a compromise on music if one person loves heavy metal and the other’s a pop-peddler.
“This is why it’s often best to leave your preconceived notions of what music is ‘good’ at the door, and let a DJ play the biggest crowd pleasers in their record collection.
“There’s a reason many of the songs in this ultimate wedding playlist have been mainstays for decades. They’re timeless classics everyone knows, and Claire and I can’t wait to play a few of ours on one couple’s special day.”
And Steps star Claire, 44, added: “I know how important music is at a wedding, and Duncan and I can’t wait to make sure every guest fully embraces that no-care feeling you only get dancing your heart out at a wedding.”
Top 30 wedding day dance floor fillers
1. Dancing Queen by Abba
2. Don’t Stop Me Now by Queen
3. Sweet Caroline by Neil Diamond
4. Happy by Pharrell Williams
5. Mamma Mia by Abba
6. Oh What a Night by Frankie Valli
7. Dancing in the Moonlight by Toploader
8. Night Fever by the Bee Gees
9. I Gotta Feeling by the Black Eyed Peas
10. Don’t Stop Believin’ by Journey
11. I’m Still Standing by Elton John
12. Mr Brightside by The Killers
13. Living on a Prayer by Bon Jovi
14. Can’t Stop the Feeling by Justin Timberlake
15. Are You Ready for Love? by Elton John
16. Let Me Entertain You by Robbie Williams
17. Signed, Sealed, Delivered by Stevie Wonder
18. Believe by Cher
19. How Will I Know by Whitney Houston
20. Single Ladies by Beyonce
21. Valerie by Amy Winehouse
22. One Love by Blue
23. Blame it on the Boogie by Jackson 5
24. Reach by S Club 7
25. Mambo No. 5 by Lou Bega
26. Sex On Fire by Kings of Leon
27. American Pie by Don McLean
28. Proud Mary by Tina Turner
29. Could It Be Magic by Take that
30. Hey Jude by The Beatles