Derbyshire comedy duo release second Christmas banger – citing Lynx Africa, pricey Christmas markets and road closures

Mark Page and Craig Webb’s Will they notice Matlock town at all? – a parody of the Band Aid festive staple – shows the pair singing the classic harmony lyrically adapted to their own wry humour against well-known backdrops in the Derbyshire village.

The pair – who previously released a tribute to Darley Dale Fish bar called Greek Greek Kebabs and a parody of the Pogues’ Fairytale of New York – routinely recruit local businesses to star in their videos.

Bar, hospitality and shop workers from around 10 businesses and children at a local school can be seen playing along with the theme of the tune – that Father Christmas has gone missing.

Song lyrics in the video – reflecting Mark and Craig’s sense of humour – include rolled eyes and mouthed expletives at a Lynx Africa gift, references to over-priced Christmas markets and a road closure hindering Santa’s journey.

Speaking about the song and Lynx Africa, Mark, 30, said: “We used to get it all the time – I think my nan mainly bought it for me. That bottle we used in the video, I opened it and started using it the other day.”

The duo met six years ago while filming in London and now run their own video production company called Reel Productions. "Craig’s from London”, said Mark. “When we met working on film sets I’d tell him about Derbyshire and say it’s all just countryside mate. There’s non of this, skyscrapers and that.

"So he came up one weekend and loved it – it’s kind of like his second home now. But it’s just where I’ve grown up and always known. I don’t think it gets noticed a lot at Christmas time. Places like Buxton, Bakewell and Wirksworth get a lot of promotion, so it’s about letting people know it’s still there.”

"People call Matlock “Gridlock” quite lot because there’s always a road closed. It’s just things locals can relate to.” The video took around two days to film with around four hours of recording time to get the lyrics right.

Mark, originally from Cromford, said: “We wanted it to sound as close to the original as we could. We spent time listening to the harmonies and re-recording it exactly how they do on the original record. That took a lot of time, its a lot of work. But the filming is the hardest part.”

This year Mark and Craig have featured some fresh businesses including healthy eating takeaway Bowl and Riber Pets but Card Factory are regulars due to their children’s hospital charity drive. Many of those featured are also raising money for Ashgate Hospice.

Mark and Craig started thinking about a Christmas song in October. “Craig had the idea of doing it like a story – Santa’s gone missing and he’s got to find his way to Matlock,” said Mark.

"But I wanted to take it a step further and make it a tongue-in-cheek version of the John Lewis Christmas adverts and have school kids doing Christmas letters and looking upset and everyone’s sad because he’s gone. And it’s brilliant song that works well.”