Musician Chris Rea, who released hits Driving Home for Christmas and Nothing to Fear, has died age 74.
A spokesperson for Rea’s wife and two children confirmed the death. The statement reads: “It is with immense sadness that we announce the death of our beloved Chris. He passed away peacefully in hospital earlier today following a short illness, surrounded by his family.” Rea had recently gone viral on social media after footage of him talking through the origins of Driving Home for Christmas was shared to his Facebook page. The hitmaker behind the Christmas classic confirmed the song was written while he was on the dole and stuck in London after having been banned from driving.
Rea told Bob Mortimer during an appearance on Gone Fishing: “I just thought I’d drive home for Christmas. I was on the dole when I wrote that. My manager had just left me, I’d just been banned from driving. My now wife, Joan, she had to drive down to London, pick me up in the Mini, and take me home. That’s when I wrote it.”
Rea had released a Christmas compilation album just a month before his death. The Christmas Album featured festive cuts from his career, including two versions of Driving Home for Christmas.
The Middlesbrough-born musician would have success away from festive tracks too, with two chart-topping albums, The Road to Hell in 1989, and Auberge in 1991. Rea released his last studio album, Road Songs for Lovers, in 2017. It was his twenty-fifth studio album. A n archival release in 2019, One Fine Day, was also released.
Tributes have since been made to Rea, with Middlesbrough Football Club posting: “We’re deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Chris Rea. A Teesside icon. Rest in peace, Chris.”
Local Middlesbrough radio station The Red also paid tribute to Rea, calling the musician one of the city’s “greatest sons.”
Their statement reads: “Teesside has lost one of its greatest sons. Chris Rea was more than a world-class musician. He was one of us. Born in Middlesbrough, shaped by Teesside, and always proud of where he came from.
“His voice, his guitar, and his songwriting carried the sound and soul of this place far beyond the River Tees and across the world. From working-class roots to global success, Chris never forgot home. His music was honest, emotional, and deeply human. Songs that spoke of love, hardship, journeys, and home resonated because they were real, just like him.
“For so many of us, we felt that perfectly when he sang about ‘driving home for Christmas’, a line that felt less like a lyric and more like a shared Teesside moment. For generations of people on Teesside, Chris Rea was proof that you could come from here and still touch the world, without losing who you are.
“Today, Teesside mourns. But we also say thank you. Thank you for the music. Thank you for the pride. Thank you for always carrying Middlesbrough with you. Rest easy, Chris. You will never be forgotten.”
