Kirsty MacColl changed offensive Fairytale of New York lyric to something else years before other people started doing it

Kirsty MacColl, the famed British singer known best for singing on The Pogues' Christmas hit 'Fairytale of New York', changed a lyric many deemed to be offensive years before it became a well-known matter of contention.

MacColl died in 2000 aged just 41 as a result of a tragic boating accident in Mexico.

Her musical legacy has endured and each Christmas, groups of families and friends gather together to belt out her world famous lyrics, during which she has an argument with her faux-partner, the part of which is sang by The Pogues' Shane MacGowan.

In recent years, there has been uproar regarding one of the original lyrics within the song, whereby MacColl calls ger partner a 'f****t,' a homophobic slur, which some believe refers to a lazy person.

Kirsty MacColl and Shane MacGowan sing together on 'Fairytale of New York' (Tim Roney/Getty Images)

Censored versions have been played on many radio stations over the past five years, with people on both sides of the fence.

Some argue the fictional argument shouldn't cause offence, while others think censorship is the correct course of action, or changing the lyric altogether to better reflect the times and avoid contention.

As it turns out, while people have been arguing amongst themselves in recent years, MacColl herself changed the lyric during a 1992 live appearance on iconic music show Top of the Pops.

MacColl took to the stage and replaced 'you cheap lousy f****t' with 'you're cheap and you're haggard' - something which people have suggested should be the lyrics people sing going forward.

Songwriter MacGowan defended the use of the lyric (Paul Natkin/Getty Images)

MacGowan, who died in 2023, said in 2018 he was 'absolutely fine' with radio stations deciding to censor the offending word, but also went on to defend its use in 2019 on Ireland’s Late Late Show.

He stated: “I’ve been told it’s insulting to gays. I don’t understand how that works. Nobody in the band thinks that’s worth a second’s thought.”

The song was used in the 2019 Christmas special of Gavin & Stacey, and the characters sang the original lyrics, which caused offence to some viewers.

Co-creator Ruth Jones, who plays the Welsh character Nessa in the show, defended the choice as it felt 'true' to the characters.

She said: "Characters in Gavin & Stacey are kind and big-hearted, I believe. So I think no one is going to be intentionally hurtful."

Jones added: “But by the same token, they’re not necessarily going to be completely politically correct or be aware of political correctness.”