The death of former British Prime Minister Margret Thatcher has sent ‘Ding Dong The Witch Is Dead’ spirally back into the UK chart.
The Wizard of Oz
12 hours after the death of the ‘Iron Lady’ was made public the classic ‘Wizard of Oz’ song ‘Ding Dong The Witch Is Dead’ has become one of the biggest selling songs in the UK today.
The song was composed by Harold Arlen with lyrics by E.Y. Harburg in 1939 for ‘The Wizard of Oz’ and first recorded by Billie Burke and Judy Garland for the movie.
Arlen also recorded a version of his song with Barbra Streisand in 1966. It was included on Barbra’s 2002 ‘Duets’ album.
The Fifth Estate had the biggest cover-version of the song in 1967.
In 2000, British band Hefner used a piece of ‘Ding Dong The Witch Is Dead’ on the end of their song ‘The Day That Thatcher Dies’.
The Judy Garland version of the song has climbed to no. 27 on the UK iTunes chart today.
