Adele dominates UK album chart

Adele has soared to the top of the UK album chart following record sales of her sophomore album 21.

The star's latest LP became the biggest-selling January release for five years after moving 208,000 copies in just seven days. The last record to better Adele's number was Whatever People Say I Am That’s What I’m Not, the 2006 debut from Sheffield band Arctic Monkeys.

Only one album in 2010 managed to match Adele by breaking the 200,000 sales barrier, the phenomenally successful Progress by Take That, which shifted over half a million copies in its first week.

In addition to her new entry, Adele's 2008 debut album 19 also makes a reappearance at the top of the chart, shooting from eight to four in its 98th week of release. The last act to boast both a number one album and a second LP in the top five at the same time was Irish band The Corrs, who sat in pole position and the runner-up spot on the album chart in April 1999.

Beyond Adele's dominance at the pinnacle of the rankings, Irish vocalist Imelda May and opera star Alfie Boe both peek into the top ten for the first time with their respective albums Mayhem and Bring Him Home. May is at seven from last week's 15, while Boe climbs 11 spots to nine.

By comparison, last week's highest new entry Ritual by White Lies takes a mighty tumble down the chart, crashing from three to 14.

The top ten in full:

1. (-) Adele: '21'
2. (1) Bruno Mars: 'Doo Wops & Hooligans'
3. (2) Rihanna: 'Loud'
4. (8) Adele: '19'
5. (6) Cee Lo Green: 'The Lady Killer'
6. (5) Ellie Goulding: 'Lights'
7. (15) Imelda May: 'Mayhem'
8. (9) Eliza Doolittle: 'Eliza Doolittle'
9. (20) Alfie Boe: 'Bring Him Home'
10. (4) Plan B: 'The Defamation Of Strickland Banks'

Source: Official Charts Company

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