Chris Rea has passed away at the age of 74, his family confirmed on Monday morning. The British singer, best known for the hit Driving Home for Christmas, died peacefully in hospital after a short illness with his wife Joan and daughters Josephine and Julia beside him.
“It is with great sadness that we announce the death of our beloved Chris,” the family statement read. “He died peacefully in hospital earlier today.”
The timing couldn’t be more heart-wrenching. Three days before Christmas. The man who wrote the song that soundtracks millions of journeys home every December won’t be here for this one. His final Instagram post, shared just hours before his death was announced, displayed the side mirror of his car featuring a road sign with Driving Home for Christmas lyrics written on it. He hoped the journey would be smooth if it snowed.
Rea, who was born in Middlesbrough in 1951 to an Italian father and Irish mother, didn’t learn to play the guitar until his early twenties. His family operated the Camillo’s ice cream factory and cafes. Chris Rea bused tables and made ice cream when he was a teen. He even sat his driving test in one of his father’s ice cream vans.
His debut album, Whatever Happened to Benny Santini? came out in 1978. The title was a joke at his label, which had wanted him to adopt that as a stage name. He refused. Fool (If You Think It’s Over) earned him a 1979 Grammy nomination for best new artist and peaked at No. 12 in America. But it flopped in the UK. Success at home took years. By 1989, he was one of Britain’s leading solo artists, with his eighth album, The Road to Hell. The title track went to number one.
Driving Home for Christmas was originally released in 1986 as a B-side. Nobody cared. But then, years later, when it got re-released, something clicked. It’s charted each and every year in the UK since 2007. It finally broke into the top 10 in 2021.
He didn’t sing it live until December 2014. When he did, he hired 12 snow cannons. In 2020, Rea discussed how the song was written in conversation with Bob Mortimer. “I was on the dole when I wrote that. My manager had just left me. I had recently lost my driver’s license. My wife-to-be, Joan, had to come down to London and pick me up in the Mini and drive us home, and that’s when I wrote it.
His health battles were brutal. He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2001 and had his pancreas removed. He had a stroke in 2016. Then, in December 2017, he fell on stage at New Theatre Oxford during a performance. It was the 35th concert of a European tour. He pushed on, despite everything. His last Christmas album was released in October 2025.
Middlesbrough Football Club wrote on Instagram, saying: “We are incredibly saddened to learn of the passing of Chris Rea. A Teesside icon. Rest in peace, Chris.” Chris Cooke, the mayor of Middlesbrough, said: “Chris Rea was immensely proud of his Middlesbrough background and the people in our town were equally proud to call him one of their own.”
Over 25 studio albums. Hits such as The Road to Hell, Auberge, On the Beach and Julia. But to most people, he will always be the voice singing about frost on the window and a thousand memories. The song that “makes every motorway journey in December feel a bit more magical. His family asked for privacy. They’ll remember him as a husband and dad. The rest of us will think of him every time that opening riff plays on the guitar.
May his soul rest in peace. Chris Rea’s music will live on forever in our hearts.
