As prime minister Rishi Sunak stood outside Number 10 i n the pouring rain and announced that a general election would take place on 4 July, a familiar tune rang out. The song was “Things Can Only Get Better” by Northern Irish band D:Ream, known to many from former Labour leader Tony Blair ’s 1996 general election campaign, which soundtracked his road to victory in the 1 May 1997 contest. Anti-Brexit campaigner Steve Bray, who has been protesting outside Westminster for the past five years, was behind the stunt on Wednesday (22 May), and said he had chosen the tune because it was “the top trolling song for the Conservatives”.
“I thought about what would be the best trolling tune if [Sunak] announced the election, ” he told the PA news agency. “And of course, it had to be ‘Things Can Only Get Better’. Because everybody can relate to that and the 1997 election.
” Northern Irish band D:Ream, featuring lead members Peter Cunnah and Al Mackenzie along with live musician Brian Cox (now known as a science broadcaster) released the song in 1993. It had taken a year to finesse, with producer Tom Frederikse building the sound with choirs until “it sounded like a stadium full of people singing,” Cunnah recalled in a 2017 interview with The Guardian . “Things Can Only Get Better” initially peaked at No 24 in the UK charts, but hit No 1 after the group toured with Take That the following year.
The band split after Cunnah and Mackenzie fell out over which direc.
