Margaret Mackie is far from ready to face her final curtain.
The 83-year-old UK woman living with dementia in an assisted-living facility is burning up the charts with her cover of Frank Sinatra’s “My Way” — virtually mopping the musical floor that’s brimming with youthful chart-toppers Lizzo, Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande.
Mackie struggles to remember names at the Northcare Suites Care Home in Edinburgh, Scotland, but she stunned fellow residents with her spot-on rendition of the Ol’ Blue Eyes classic at the facility’s Christmas party.
A video of the octogenarian’s performance with home worker Jamie Lee Morley, 31, went viral a few weeks ago — so he decided to have the tune recorded professionally and release it as a single.
As of Tuesday, the track, which benefits the Alzheimer’s Society and Dementia UK, is now perched at No. 4 on the Amazon download chart — surpassing hot pop stars Lewis Capaldi and Dua Lipa.
Searching for words, The Linlithgow, Scotland, native Mackie tells South West News Service her surprise pop star moment is “just amazing. I feel so happy about everything. It’s great we can raise all this money for charity.”
Mackie and Morley also reached No. 7 on the iTunes Top 40 UK Pop Songs chart — at one point outranking Lizzo, Bieber, Grande and Ed Sheeran, the Edinburgh Evening News reports.
Morley, a part-time singer, had nothing but praise for his discovery’s musical talents.
“It was the first time that she’d been in the studio, but was like she had done it a 100 times before,” he says. “She’s got such an amazing voice. The fact that she can do that while living with dementia is mind-blowing. It’s just crazy.”
The caregiver now considers music part of Mackie’s ongoing therapy.
“You can just see the change of the look in her face when she starts singing or she hears music that she likes,” he says. “She comes alive when she sings, and she looks so happy, it is beautiful to see. It is the power of music.”
Mackie moved into the care home just weeks after it opened in September 2019, and Morley said he often spotted her singing and dancing to herself.
When he was asked to arrange the Christmas show for residents, Morley asked Mackie to join him for a duet of his late grandfather’s favorite song. (His granddad died after a battle with Alzheimer’s disease.)
“You never know how they are going to react — she is living with dementia,” he says. “All I knew was that she loves music, and we always sing ‘My Way’ together and I just thought it would be a great moment.”
The impromptu musical moment, however, turned into something much deeper when she says “every word absolutely amazingly,” Jamie says.
“The whole audience erupted. Everyone just burst into tears — she stole the show,” he continues. “The response was unreal. The whole place was crying. We got a standing ovation, everyone was clapping. Everyone was blown away.”
The touching moment was captured on video by Margaret’s daughter Mairi Hunter, 55, who posted it on social media. Within 24 hours, the clip had gone viral.
In late December, Mackie headed into the studio, where Morley says it took just 45 minutes and two takes to record their hit single.
“For someone with dementia, it fascinates me how amazing music makes her feel,” he says. “She becomes a different person. It’s just incredible. She has definitely got the music in her blood. She is an inspiration to so many people — especially me! I just love her.”
Check out the professional recording of their single below: