The Greatest Showman soundtrack matches Adele’s HUGE chart record

The classic tale of underdogs has taken a leaf out of its own (song) book this week.

The cast recording of the hit musical film scores its eleventh week at Number 1 on the Official Albums Chart, matching Adele’s 2011 album 21 for the longest consecutive run at the top spot in the last 30 years.

Fuelled by the movie’s strong legs at the box ofice and breakout hits like Oscar-nominated The Greatest Show and Rewrite The Stars, the album has been the surprise smash of 2018. 

Now fast approaching the 500,000 combined sales landmark in the UK (465,000), its success has been powered by 42% physical purchases (197,000 copies), 23% digital downloads (107,000 copies) and 35% streaming. It is currently on course to be the biggest album of the entire year.

New entries and high climbers

Meanwhile, two new albums make a Top 5 debut this week; rapper XXXTentacion at Number 3 with his second album ?, and The Fratellis, whose new record In Your Own Sweet Time becomes their first Top 10 in ten years.

US indie rockers The Decemberists land their highest charting album yet with I’ll Be Your Girl (8), indie pop band Fickle Friends enter at Number 9 with their debut collection You Are Someone Else, and Brighton newcomers The Magic Gang open at 12 with their self-titled debut.

Further down, Alexandra Burke’s first release in six years, The Truth Is, opens at Number 16, George Ezra’s 2014 debut Wanted On Voyage jumps 31 places to Number 18 in anticipation of his new album Staying At Tamara’s, and Kim Wilde celebrates her first Top 40 album in the UK for 25 years – Here Come The Aliens is new at Number 21.

Official Singles Chart: Drake scores ninth week at Number 1

God’s Plan by Drake has secured a ninth week at Number 1 on the Official Singles Chart. The Canadian’s latest single joins 20 other songs in the Official Chart’s 66-year history to have logged nine or more weeks at the top.

God’s Plan is the star’s second hit to achieve this after his 2016 summer smash One Dance spent 15 weeks at the summit. 

Rudimental’s These Days ft. Jess Glynne, Macklemore and Dan Caplen put up another good fight this week, finishing just 3,200 combined sales behind Drake at Number 2.

In turn, the song has now matched an Official Chart record for the most weeks spent at Number 2; These Days shares this feat with All-4-One’s 1994 hit I Swear, and the 2011 single Moves Like Jagger by Maroon 5 ft. Christina Aguilera.

Elsewhere in this week’s Top 5, George Ezra’s Paradise climbs seven places to Number 5, earning his third Top 10 hit.