Wednesday Week

Album: Hypnotised (1980)
Charted: 11
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • The Rolling Stones and Lynyrd Skynyrd wrote songs about girls named Tuesday, but The Undertones came up with one about a lady named Wednesday.

    The Undertones came up with lots of characters for their songs, and in this one, Wednesday Week is a girl who breaks the singer's heart. It runs a compact 2:16, but is packed with ambiguity as we're left to wonder if this lady exists at all, or if she's only in his head:

    Wednesday Week, she loved me
    Wednesday Week, never happened at all
  • The Undertones formed in Derry, Northern Ireland, in the mid-'70s, a challenging time and place for a band as their Catholic fans avoided shows in Protestant areas and vice versa.

    They had a series of modest UK hits in 1978 and 1979, notably their debut single "Teenage Kicks." In 1980, they released "Wednesday Week" as the second single from their second album, Hypnotised. By this time they were getting lots of positive press in the UK, who hailed them as the fresh sound of the post-glam era. They only managed one more Top 40 hit (the ambitiously titled "It's Going To Happen!") and never made inroads in America, despite tour of that country, including one with The Clash.
  • Feargal Sharkey was the group's lead singer. He said that "Wednesday Week" was the first Undertones song that his parents liked.
  • The song was written by the group's guitarist, John O'Neill.
  • Elvis Costello wrote and recorded a completely different song called "Wednesday Week" that first appeared as the B-side of his "Talking In The Dark" single in 1978. It's likely that The Undertones poached the title from the Elvis track.

Comments: 2

  • Daveman50 from NyDominic from Ontario: right you are. It's about fickle teenage crushes. Last Wednesday she wanted me, this week she's moved on.
  • Dominic from OntarioWednesday week means a week ago Wednesday. It's not a girl's name, ya pillock
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Justin Timberlake

Justin TimberlakeFact or Fiction

Was Justin the first to be Punk'd by Ashton Kutcher? Did Britney really blame him for her meltdown? Did his bandmates think he was gay?

Terry Jacks ("Seasons in the Sun")

Terry Jacks ("Seasons in the Sun")Songwriter Interviews

Inspired by his dear friend, "Seasons in the Sun" paid for Terry's boat, which led him away from music and into a battle with Canadian paper mills.

Charlie Benante of Anthrax

Charlie Benante of AnthraxSongwriter Interviews

The drummer for Anthrax is also a key songwriter. He explains how the group puts their songs together and tells the stories behind some of their classics.

Does Jimmy Page Worship The Devil? A Look at Satanism in Rock

Does Jimmy Page Worship The Devil? A Look at Satanism in RockSong Writing

We ring the Hell's Bells to see what songs and rockers are sincere in their Satanism, and how much of it is an act.

Johnette Napolitano of Concrete Blonde

Johnette Napolitano of Concrete BlondeSongwriter Interviews

The singer/bassist for Concrete Blonde talks about how her songs come from clairvoyance, and takes us through the making of their hit "Joey."

Penny Ford of Snap!

Penny Ford of Snap!Songwriter Interviews

The original voice of Snap! this story is filled with angry drag queens, video impersonators and Chaka Khan.