document_title: UK Singles Chart records and statistics

question_text: what is the longest running uk number 1 single

question_tokens: what is the longest running uk number 1 single

text: UK Singles Chart records and statistics

text: Most number ones[edit]

text: The following is a list of all the acts who are on five or more UK number one songs with an individual credit (meaning, the main artist or named separately as a featured artist – being part of a group does not count towards an individual's total).[1]

text: Simply playing or singing on a single without credit will not count, or the top positions would almost certainly belong to session musicians such as Clem Cattini who is reported to have played drums on over 40 number ones.[2]

text:
Total
Artist

21
Elvis Presley

17
The Beatles

14
Cliff Richard

Westlife

13
Madonna

12
The Shadows

Take That

9
ABBA

Eminem

Calvin Harris

Rihanna

Spice Girls

8
Oasis

The Rolling Stones

7
Michael Jackson

Elton John

McFly

George Michael

Kylie Minogue

Tinie Tempah

U2

Robbie Williams

6
Justin Bieber

Blondie

Boyzone

Jess Glynne

David Guetta

Queen

Slade

Sam Smith

Britney Spears

Rod Stewart

Sugababes

5
All Saints

Bee Gees

Beyoncé

The Black Eyed Peas

David Bowie

Cheryl

JLS

Bruno Mars

Ne-Yo

Katy Perry

The Police

Dizzee Rascal

Flo Rida

Ed Sheeran

will.i.am

text: Progression of the record[edit]

text: Al Martino was the first act to have a number one single, with "Here in My Heart" in November 1952. Seven months later Eddie Fisher became the first act to have two number one singles, with "I'm Walking Behind You" following "Outside of Heaven". In November 1953 Frankie Laine scored a third number one single with "Answer Me" and a fourth with "A Woman in Love" in October 1956. In 1960 "It's Now or Never" gave Elvis Presley his fifth number-one single. He increased the record ten times until June 1965 when "Crying in the Chapel" became his 15th number one. The Beatles then took the record with a 16th, "Get Back", and 17th, "The Ballad of John and Yoko", their last number one to date. After his death in August 1977, Elvis scored a 17th chart topper with "Way Down" to tie.

text: In 2002, having been used in a Nike World Cup advertisement, a 1968 Elvis song "A Little Less Conversation" was remixed as Elvis vs JXL and went straight to the top for 4 weeks, giving Elvis his 18th number one single. Celebrating the 70th anniversary of his birthday, all of Elvis' 18 number ones were re-issued in 2005. Despite being re-issues, they were given different catalogue numbers and therefore count as separate singles, giving Elvis 21 number one singles.[3]

text: ^ Note: The Shadows, or The Drifters as they were originally called, are credited on twelve #1 singles. Seven of these share credit with Cliff Richard and some lists recognise only their 5 chart-topping singles without Richard.

text: Most combined weeks at number one on the UK singles charts[edit]

text:
Rank
Artist
Weeks at #1

1
Elvis Presley
80

2
The Beatles
69

3
Cliff Richard
46

4
The Shadows
44

5
Frankie Laine
32

6
ABBA
31

7
Justin Bieber
30

8

Madonna
29

Take That

9
Drake
26

10
Rihanna
25

11
Ed Sheeran
24

12

Elton John
23

Wet Wet Wet

13
Spice Girls
22

text:
Jump up ^ "Record-Breakers and Trivia". EveryHit.com. Retrieved 2016-07-23.
Jump up ^ Wilson, John. "Clem Cattini, Britain's record chart topper, keeps that backbeat going strong at 72". The Guardian. Retrieved 2015-05-21.
Jump up ^ "Elvis Presley | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. Retrieved 2016-07-23.

tag: ol

text: Most weeks at number one[edit]

text: The record for most non-consecutive weeks at number one is 18 by Frankie Laine's "I Believe" in 1953. It spent nine weeks at number one, dropped down for a week, returned to number one for six weeks, dropped down for a further week and returned to number one for a third time for three weeks. It is one of five singles to return to number one more than once, the others being "Singing the Blues" by Guy Mitchell in 1957, "Happy" by Pharrell Williams in 2014, "What Do You Mean?" by Justin Bieber in 2015 and "Despacito" by Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee featuring Justin Bieber in 2017.[1]

text: The longest unbroken run at number one is "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" by Bryan Adams, which spent 16 consecutive weeks in 1991.

text: Below is a table of all singles that have spent 10 or more weeks at the top of the charts:

text:
Position
Artist
Single
Year
Weeks

1
Frankie Laine
"I Believe"*
1953
18 weeks

2
Bryan Adams
"(Everything I Do) I Do It for You"
1991
16 weeks

3
Wet Wet Wet
"Love Is All Around"
1994
15 weeks

Drake (feat. Wizkid and Kyla)
"One Dance"
2016

5
Queen
"Bohemian Rhapsody"*
1975/76 & 1991/92
14 weeks

Ed Sheeran
"Shape of You"*
2017

7
Slim Whitman
"Rose Marie"
1955
11 weeks

Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee (feat. Justin Bieber)
"Despacito"*
2017

9
David Whitfield
"Cara Mia"
1954
10 weeks

Whitney Houston
"I Will Always Love You"
1992

Rihanna (feat. Jay-Z)
"Umbrella"
2007

text: Note: Songs denoted with an asterisk (*) spent non-consecutive weeks at number one.[2]

text: Most weeks at number two[edit]

text: Johnnie Ray's "Such a Night" spent eight consecutive weeks at number two behind Doris Day's "Secret Love" having spent a single week at the top. "Terry's Theme from Limelight" by Frank Chacksfield spent a total of eight weeks at number two (in four separate spells) without ever reaching number one. All-4-One's "I Swear" and "Moves like Jagger" by Maroon 5 featuring Christina Aguilera both spent seven consecutive weeks at number two without reaching number one. "These Days" by Rudimental featuring Jess Glynne, Macklemore and Dan Caplen also spent seven consecutive weeks at number two behind Drake's "God's Plan" having spent a single week at the top.

text: Number ones by different artists[edit]

text: Currently two songs have reached number one four times by different artists: "Unchained Melody" and "Do They Know It's Christmas?". Three of the versions of "Unchained Melody" sold over a million copies, while two of the versions of "Do They Know It's Christmas?" achieved this. The lyrics of the Band Aid 30 version were changed to give it relevance to the 2014 Ebola crisis. Numerous artists appear on more than one version of "Do They Know It's Christmas?".

text: Four artists

text:
"Unchained Melody" — Jimmy Young (1955), The Righteous Brothers (1990), Robson & Jerome (1995) and Gareth Gates (2002)
"Do They Know It's Christmas?" — Band Aid (1984), Band Aid II (1989), Band Aid 20 (2004) and Band Aid 30 (2014)

text: Three artists

text:
"Spirit in the Sky" – Norman Greenbaum (1971), Doctor and the Medics (1986) and Gareth Gates and The Kumars (2003)
"You'll Never Walk Alone" — Gerry & The Pacemakers (1963), The Crowd (1985) and Robson & Jerome (1996)
"With a Little Help from My Friends" — Joe Cocker (1968), Wet Wet Wet (1988) and Sam & Mark (2004)

text: Two artists

text:
"Answer Me" — David Whitfield and Frankie Laine (1953)
"Cherry Pink (and Apple Blossom White)" — Perez Prado and Eddie Calvert (1955)
"Singing the Blues" — Guy Mitchell and Tommy Steele (1957)
"Young Love" — Tab Hunter (1957) and Donny Osmond (1973)
"Mary's Boy Child" — Harry Belafonte (1957) and Boney M. (1978)
"Living Doll" — Cliff Richard and The Drifters (1959) and Cliff Richard and The Young Ones feat. Hank Marvin (1986)
"Can't Help Falling in Love" — Elvis Presley (1962) and UB40 (1993)
"I Got You Babe" — Sonny & Cher (1965) and UB40 and Chrissie Hynde (1985)
"Somethin' Stupid" — Frank Sinatra and Nancy Sinatra (1967) and Robbie Williams and Nicole Kidman (2001)
"Baby Come Back" — The Equals (1967) and Pato Banton feat. UB40 (1994)
"What a Wonderful World" — Louis Armstrong (1968) and Katie Melua and Eva Cassidy (2007)
"Dizzy" — Tommy Roe (1969) and Vic Reeves and The Wonder Stuff (1991)
"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon and Garfunkel (1970) and Artists for Grenfell (2017)
"Without You" — Harry Nilsson (1972) and Mariah Carey (1994)
"Seasons in the Sun" — Terry Jacks (1974) and Westlife (1999)
"Everything I Own" — Ken Boothe (1974) and Boy George (1987)
"Tragedy" — Bee Gees (1979) and Steps (1999)
"The Tide Is High" — Blondie (1980) and Atomic Kitten (2002)
"Uptown Girl" — Billy Joel (1983) and Westlife (2001)
"The Power of Love" — Frankie Goes to Hollywood (1984) and Gabrielle Aplin (2012)
"He Ain't Heavy He's My Brother" - The Hollies (1988) and The Justice Collective (2012)
"Eternal Flame" — The Bangles (1989) and Atomic Kitten (2001)
"You Are Not Alone" – Michael Jackson (1995) and The X Factor finalists 2009 (2009)
"Lady Marmalade" — All Saints (1998) and Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim, Mýa and Pink (2001)
"Mambo No. 5" — Lou Bega (1999) and Bob the Builder (2001)
"Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)" — Mariah Carey feat. Westlife (2000) and Steve Brookstein (2005)
"Wake Me Up" — Avicii (2013) and Gareth Malone's All Star Choir (2014)

text: Most number ones from chart debut[edit]

text: In 1963, Gerry & the Pacemakers became the first act to have their first three singles reach number one when "How Do You Do It?", "I Like It" & "You'll Never Walk Alone" all hit the top spot.

text: The record was equalled by Frankie Goes to Hollywood in 1984 and five years later by Jive Bunny & The Mastermixers.

text: During 1996 and 1997, the Spice Girls took their first six singles to number one from "Wannabe" to "Too Much".

text: Westlife became the first act to have their first seven singles ("Swear It Again", "If I Let You Go", "Flying Without Wings", "I Have a Dream / Seasons in the Sun", "Fool Again", "Against All Odds" & "My Love") reach number one in 2000. [3]

text: Biggest-selling singles[edit]

text:
Best-selling singles in the UK

No.
Single
Artist
Record label[a]
Released[a]
Chart
peak[a]
Sales[b]

1
"Candle in the Wind 1997" / "Something
About the Way You Look Tonight"
Elton John
Rocket
000000001997-09-01-0000September 1997
1
4,920,000

2
"Do They Know It's Christmas?"
Band Aid
Mercury
000000001984-11-01-0000November 1984
1
3,750,000

3
"Bohemian Rhapsody"
Queen
EMI
000000001975-10-01-0000October 1975
1
2,440,000

4
"Mull of Kintyre" / "Girls' School"
Wings
Parlophone
000000001977-11-01-0000November 1977
1
2,080,000

5
"You're the One That I Want"
John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John
RSO
000000001978-05-01-0000May 1978
1
2,050,000

6
"Relax"
Frankie Goes to Hollywood
ZTT
000000001984-01-01-0000January 1984
1
2,030,000

7
"Rivers of Babylon" / "Brown Girl in the Ring"
Boney M.
Atlantic / Hansa
000000001978-04-01-0000April 1978
1
2,020,000

8
"She Loves You"
The Beatles
Parlophone
000000001963-08-01-0000August 1963
1
1,930,000

9
"Love Is All Around"
Wet Wet Wet
PolyGram
000000001994-05-01-0000May 1994
1
1,860,000

10
"Mary's Boy Child – Oh My Lord"
Boney M.
Atlantic / Hansa
000000001978-11-01-0000November 1978
1
1,860,000

text:
^ Jump up to: a b c The record labels, dates and chart peaks are those given by the OCC.[4]
Jump up ^ The sales are those given by the OCC as of 27 June 2013[update], except where a more recent OCC figure is available.[5][6]

text: Posthumous number ones[edit]

text: The first artist to score a number one single after their death was Buddy Holly in April 1959 with "It Doesn't Matter Anymore". Singer Eddie Cochran later made no. 1 after being killed in a taxi crash with "Three Steps to Heaven" in June 1960. Jim Reeves scored a no. 1 single with "Distant Drums" in September 1966, two years after his death in a plane crash.

text: Dying in 1970, Jimi Hendrix scored his only chart-topping single with "Voodoo Child" two months after his death, in November. After this the only other artists to receive one posthumous number one single were:

text:
Jackie Wilson, who died of pneumonia in 1984 and hit the top with "Reet Petite (The Sweetest Girl in Town)"
Freddie Mercury, with "Living on My Own" in 1993 (also Queen topped the chart a few weeks after Mercury's death in 1991 with "Bohemian Rhapsody"/"These Are the Days of Our Lives")
Aaliyah, who died aged 22 in a plane crash and hit the top with "More Than a Woman" in 2002
George Harrison, who died of lung cancer in 2001 and hit the top in 2002 with "My Sweet Lord", which had previously been a no. 1 single for him in 1971
Tupac Shakur, with "Ghetto Gospel" in 2005
The Notorious B.I.G., with "Nasty Girl" in 2006
Eva Cassidy featuring Katie Melua, with "What a Wonderful World" in 2007

text: Harrison took over from Aaliyah at the top, marking the only time in UK chart history one posthumous act has replaced a different posthumous act at number one.

text: Elvis Presley and John Lennon have both accumulated three or more posthumous chart toppers. John Lennon did not have any solo no. 1 singles during his lifetime, but after his death "(Just Like) Starting Over" and 1975 song "Imagine" went to number one. Lennon became the second act to replace themselves at the top of the UK charts when "Woman" took over for a two-week spell at the top. Shortly after this Roxy Music's version of "Jealous Guy" also reached no. 1, meaning that from December 1980 to March 1981 four out of six chart toppers were written by Lennon.

text: Presley holds the record for the most posthumous chart toppers. Following his death in August 1977, "Way Down" instantly shot to the top for five weeks. Twenty-five years later, an old song called "A Little Less Conversation" was remixed by JXL and used in a Nike World Cup advert. It became so popular that it shot straight to the top of the charts and remained there for four weeks. Then in 2005, RCA decided to re-issue all 18 of his no. 1 singles for his 70th birthday anniversary. "Jailhouse Rock", "One Night/I Got Stung" and "It's Now or Never" became three more chart toppers for the superstar, giving him 21 in total of which five were posthumous. In 2007, the 30th anniversary of his death, one of Presley's albums reached the top spot.

text: American rapper Tupac Shakur died in September 1996. His rival, the Notorious B.I.G., was killed a few months later in 1997. Neither reached the top of the UK charts during their lifetimes, but in 2005, Tupac reached number one with "Ghetto Gospel" sharing the credit with Elton John. A few months later, in 2006 the Notorious B.I.G. matched this feat with "Nasty Girl" (sharing the credit with Diddy, Nelly, Jagged Edge & Avery Storm).[citation needed]

text: Lowest selling number one[edit]

text: The lowest weekly sale for a number one single is 17,694 copies held by Orson's "No Tomorrow" in 2006.[7]

text: The addition of downloads to the UK charts meant that singles could reach number one with no physical copy being released. The first single to achieve this was Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy" in early 2006. Since 2014, audio streaming has been included in the calculation of chart position, so it is now possible for a single to reach number one without selling any copies (if it were only available on streaming services). In the week ending 24 September 2015, "What Do You Mean?" by Justin Bieber became the first number one with over half of its chart sales made up of streaming points, with sales of 30,000 and 36,000 points from 3.6 million streams.

text: Since the incorporation of streaming into the singles chart, the Official Charts Company have continued to compile a sales only chart. In week ending 27 April 2017 "Sign of the Times" by Harry Styles became the first number one in the sales only chart to sell less than "No Tomorrow" by Orson, with 16,686 copies.[8]

text: Acts to occupy number one and number two[edit]

text:
The Beatles

"I Want to Hold Your Hand" and "She Loves You" (three weeks in December 1963)
"Hello Goodbye" and "Magical Mystery Tour" (three weeks in December 1967)

John Travolta — "Summer Nights" (with Olivia Newton-John) and "Sandy" (one week in November 1978)
John Lennon — "Imagine" and: "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)"; "Woman" (both January 1981)
Madonna — "Into the Groove" and "Holiday" (one week in August 1985)
Justin Bieber

"Sorry" and "Love Yourself" (one week in November 2015); "Love Yourself" and "Sorry" (five non-consecutive weeks in December 2015 and January 2016)
"Cold Water" (with MØ & Major Lazer) and "Let Me Love You" (three weeks in August 2016)
"Despacito" (with Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee) and "I'm the One (song)" (with DJ Khaled, Lil Wayne, Quavo & Chance the Rapper) (four weeks in May and June 2017)

Ed Sheeran

"Shape of You" and: "Castle on the Hill" (five weeks bin January and February 2018); "How Would You Feel (Paean)" (one week in February 2017); "Galway Girl" (five weeks in March and April 2017)
"Perfect" and "River" (with Eminem) (three non-consecutive weeks in December 2017 and January 2018)

text: In addition, in the final week that Justin Bieber was at #1 and #2 with "Love Yourself" and "Sorry", "What Do You Mean" was at #3. For the first three weeks that Ed Sheeran was at #1 and #2 with "Shape of You" and "Galway Girl", "Castle on the Hill" was at #3, and for the first of these three weeks Sheeran's "Perfect", "New Man" and "Happier" were at #4, #5 and #6 respectively.[9]

text: Self-replacement at number one[edit]

text: Since the inception of the UK Singles Chart in 1952 only five acts have replaced themselves at the top of the UK charts with exactly the same billing (as opposed to any named artist, for example 'Cliff Richard and the Shadows' and 'The Shadows' have had back to back number ones on four occasions):

text:
The Beatles — "I Want to Hold Your Hand" replaced "She Loves You" (12 December 1963)
John Lennon — "Woman" replaced "Imagine" (7 February 1981)
Elvis Presley — "One Night/I Got Stung" replaced "Jailhouse Rock" (22 January 2005)
Justin Bieber — "Love Yourself" replaced "Sorry" (10 December 2015); "Despacito" (Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee featuring Justin Bieber) replaced "I'm the One" (DJ Khaled featuring Justin Bieber, Quavo, Chance the Rapper and Lil Wayne) (18 May 2017)
Ed Sheeran — "River" (Eminem featuring Ed Sheeran) replaced "Perfect" (25 January 2018)[10]

text: Fastest selling single[edit]

text: The fastest selling single in chart history is "Candle in the Wind 1997" by Elton John which sold 1.55 million copies in its first week (it sold 658,000 on the first day of release, 13 September 1997).[11]

text: The fastest selling debut single is "Anything Is Possible/Evergreen" by Will Young, which sold 1.11 million copies in its first week on sale.[12] Publicity had built up due to the televised talent contest Pop Idol with 8.7 million people phoning in to vote for the finalists.[13]

text: The fastest selling single by a British group is the Spice Girls "2 Become 1" which sold over 462,000 copies during its first week on sale and over 763,000 copies in a fortnight. In total, the single sold over 1.1 million copies to date.[14]

text: Biggest selling single not to top the chart[edit]

text: The record is held by Wham! with their 1984 Christmas release, "Last Christmas" / "Everything She Wants", which peaked at number two, being kept off the top by Band Aid's "Do They Know It's Christmas?".[15] It has sold 1.77 million copies following first week sales of half a million.[16] In December 2017, a year after George Michael's death, fans tried to get "Last Christmas" to number one, but again it peaked at number two.[17]

text: The biggest selling single to peak at number three is New Order's "Blue Monday", which has sold over a million copies.[15] However, it garnered its total sales via two further remixes of the track, meaning its one million sales are attributed over all three releases. The biggest selling release to peak at number three is Ed Sheeran's "The A Team", which has sold over 1,067,000 copies since its 2011 release.[18] The biggest selling single to never make the top 5 is "Chasing Cars" by Snow Patrol, which peaked at number 6 and has sold more copies than "The A Team".[19] The biggest selling single not to reach the top 10 is "Numb" by Linkin Park which never charted higher than #14.

text: Downloads[edit]

text: Downloads grew steadily in popularity after first being integrated into the chart in 2004. In early September the UK Official Download Chart was launched, and a new live recording of Westlife's "Flying Without Wings" was the first number-one.[20]The first number one to chart without ever receiving a UK physical release was Coldplay's "Viva la Vida" in June 2008. As of 2012, very few songs are given a physical release, and almost the entire chart is released solely on digital download.

text: On 22 June 2008, both songs in the top two were there on downloads alone:[21]

text:
"Viva la Vida" by Coldplay
"Closer" by Ne-Yo

text: On 31 August 2008, the top three were download-only at the time:[22]

text:
"I Kissed a Girl" by Katy Perry
"Pjanoo" by Eric Prydz
"Disturbia" by Rihanna

text: On 1 March 2009, the top four were all download-only:[23]

text:
"My Life Would Suck Without You" by Kelly Clarkson
"Love Story" by Taylor Swift
"Poker Face" by Lady Gaga
"Dead and Gone" by T.I. (feat. Justin Timberlake)

text: By 13 February 2010, the whole top 9 consisted of download-only songs:[24]

text:
"Fireflies" by Owl City
"Under Pressure (Ice Ice Baby)" by Jedward (feat. Vanilla Ice)
"If We Ever Meet Again" by Timbaland (feat. Katy Perry)
"Don't Stop Believin'" by Glee Cast
"Empire State of Mind (Part II) Broken Down" by Alicia Keys
"Replay" by Iyaz
"Starstrukk" by 3OH!3 (feat. Katy Perry)
"One Shot" by JLS
"Don't Stop Believin'" by Journey

text: Non-English language number-ones[edit]

text:
"Je t'aime... moi non plus" – Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin (French – 11 October 1969 for one week)
"Chanson D'Amour" – The Manhattan Transfer (French/English – 12 March 1977 for three weeks)
"Begin the Beguine" – Julio Iglesias (Spanish/English – 5 December 1981 for one week)
"Rock Me Amadeus" – Falco (German/English – 10 May 1986 for one week)
"La Bamba" – Los Lobos (Spanish – 1 August 1987 for two weeks)
"Sadeness (Part I)" – Enigma (French/Latin/English – 19 January 1991 for one week)
"The Ketchup Song (Aserejé)" – Las Ketchup (Spanish/English – 19 October 2002 for one week)
"We No Speak Americano" – Yolanda Be Cool and DCUP (Neapolitan/English – 31 July 2010 for one week)
"Gangnam Style" – Psy (Korean/English – 6 October 2012 for one week)
"Despacito" – Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee featuring Justin Bieber (Spanish/English – 18 May 2017 for eleven non-consecutive weeks)

text: Most weeks on UK Singles Chart by decade[edit]

text: [citation needed]

text:
Shakin' Stevens 254 weeks
Madonna 252 weeks
Michael Jackson 241 weeks
Cliff Richard 234 weeks
Madness 217 weeks
UB40 217 weeks
Kool & the Gang 196 weeks

text:
Oasis 282 weeks
Madonna 258 weeks
Mariah Carey 219 weeks
Celine Dion 215 weeks
Boyzone 201 weeks
Janet Jackson 177 weeks
Michael Jackson 175 weeks
East 17/E17 170 weeks
Whitney Houston 169 weeks
Bryan Adams 163 weeks

text:
Kanye West 320 weeks
Rihanna 300 weeks
Justin Timberlake 289 weeks
Beyoncé 287 weeks
Akon 280 weeks
Britney Spears 278 weeks
Pink 268 weeks
Sugababes 265 weeks
Girls Aloud 255 weeks
Eminem 250 weeks

text: 2010s (up to and including week ending 17 November 2016)[edit]

text:
Rihanna 782 weeks
Ed Sheeran 526 weeks
David Guetta 507 weeks
Justin Bieber 481 weeks
Drake 414 weeks
Tinie Tempah 406 weeks
Calvin Harris 397 weeks
Bruno Mars 385 weeks
Nicki Minaj 365 weeks
Chris Brown 361 weeks

text: Top chart acts per year by total weeks on the singles chart[edit]

text:
Year
Artist
Weeks on chart

1952
Frankie Laine
13

1953
84

1954
66

1955
Ruby Murray
85

1956
Bill Haley & His Comets
110

1957
Elvis Presley
118

1958
Pat Boone
76

1959
Russ Conway
81

1960
The Shadows
107

1961
118

1962
92

1963
116

1964
75

1965
54

1966
Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich
51

1967
Engelbert Humperdinck
97

1968
Tom Jones
58

1969
Marvin Gaye
60

1970
Elvis Presley
59

1971
66

1972
T. Rex
58

1973
David Bowie
55

1974
The Wombles
65

1975
Mud
45

1976
Rod Stewart
48

1977
Elvis Presley
49

1978
John Travolta
60

1979
Donna Summer
46

1980
Madness
46

1981
Adam & The Ants
91

1982
Soft Cell
49

1983
Michael Jackson
60

1984
Frankie Goes to Hollywood
68

1985
Madonna
84

1986
59

1987
41

1988
Kylie Minogue
54

1989
Bobby Brown
52

1990
New Kids on the Block
56

1991
R.E.M
36

1992
Michael Jackson
38

1993
Whitney Houston
50

1994
Mariah Carey
45

1995
Oasis
64

1996
134

1997
Spice Girls
57

1998
Aqua
52

1999
Steps
76

2000
Craig David
58

2001
Shaggy
54

2002
Gareth Gates/Ja Rule
57

2003
Sean Paul
58

2004
Kelis
47

2005
Elvis Presley
81

2006
The Pussycat Dolls
71

2007
Amy Winehouse
119

2008
Rihanna
129

2009
Lady Gaga
150

2010
123

2011
Rihanna
224

2012
151

2013
will.i.am
100

2014
Ed Sheeran
159

2015
173

text: Totals include all instances where an artist is actually credited as part of the act. Therefore, for example, The Shadows score for their own hits as well as those where they backed Cliff Richard, and Diana Ross scores for both her solo hits and those as Diana Ross & the Supremes. However, Paul McCartney, for example, is not credited for any of The Beatles' hits as he does not have a separate credit, (although his hits with Wings do count towards his total as they are classed together in the Guinness Book of Hit Singles).

text: Age records[edit]

text: Youngest[edit]

text:
The youngest artist to have a number 1 single is Jimmy Osmond, who was nine years old in 1972, with "Long Haired Lover from Liverpool".
The youngest artist to have a number 1 single in three decades is Britney Spears who was 31 years old when "Scream & Shout" became her sixth number one single in 2013. She had scored one number one in the 1990s and four in the 2000s.
The youngest artist to enter at number 1 is Billie Piper who was 15 with "Because We Want To".

text: Oldest[edit]

text:
The oldest artist to have a number 1 single is Tom Jones, who was 68 when "(Barry) Islands in the Stream" reached the top in 2009.
The oldest female solo artist to have a number 1 single is Cher, who was 52 when her single "Believe" reached number 1. It spent 7 weeks at the top and became the best selling single by a female artist in the UK.
The oldest artist to achieve their first number 1 is TV actor Clive Dunn with "Grandad" in 1971 on the week of his 51st birthday.[citation needed]

text: Other records[edit]

text: General[edit]

text: NB: In the following statistics, Elvis Presley's 17 re-issues in 2005, which all made the Top 5, count as separate hits.

text:
Most Top 75 hits: Elvis Presley (152). Runner-up: Cliff Richard (131)
Most Top 40 hits: Elvis Presley (128). Runner-up: Cliff Richard (120)
Most Top 20 hits: Elvis Presley (100). Runner-up: Cliff Richard (95)
Most Top 10 hits: Elvis Presley (77). Runner-up: Cliff Richard (66)
Most Top 5 hits: Elvis Presley (54). Runner-up: Madonna (44)
Most Consecutive Top 5 hits: Westlife (22). Runner-up: Elvis Presley (20)
Most Consecutive Top 10 hits: Madonna (35)
Most consecutive Top 5 hits by a group: Westlife (22), Runner-up: Girls Aloud (20)
Most consecutive Top 5 hits by a male group: Westlife (22)
Most Consecutive Top 10 hits by a female group: Girls Aloud (20). Runner-up: Destiny's Child (11)
Most Consecutive Top 10 hits including debut single by male solo: Rick Astley (8)
Most Top 40 hits by a female group: The Supremes (30). Runner-up: Bananarama (25) and Sugababes (25)
Most consecutive Number 1 hits by a group: Westlife (7)
Most consecutive Number 1 hits by a male group: Westlife (7)
Most Consecutive Number 1 hits by a female group: Spice Girls (6)
Most successful songwriter: Paul McCartney 1695 weeks. Runner-up: John Lennon 1424 weeks
Most number ones written; Paul McCartney and John Lennon (33). Runner-up: Madonna (13)
Most weeks on singles chart: Elvis Presley (1277 wks). Runner-up: Cliff Richard (1166 weeks)

text: Most hits without reaching...[edit]

text:
Most Top 75 hits without reaching No 1: Glee Cast (100)
Most Top 40 hits without reaching No 1: Depeche Mode (43)
Most Top 10 hits without reaching No 1: Bon Jovi (18). Runner-up: Janet Jackson (17)
Most No 2 hits without a No 1: Sash! (5)
Most Top 75 hits without reaching Top 5: Chris Rea (32)
Most Top 40 hits without reaching Top 5: Gloria Estefan (27)
Most Top 10 hits without reaching Top 5: Gloria Estefan (5)
Most Top 75 hits without reaching Top 10: Super Furry Animals (21)
Most Top 40 hits without reaching Top 10: Super Furry Animals (19)
Most Top 20 hits without reaching Top 10: The Levellers and Super Furry Animals (8)
Most Top 75 hits without reaching Top 20: PJ Harvey (15)
Most Top 40 hits without reaching Top 20: The Almighty (8)
Most Top 75 hits without reaching Top 40: Gorky's Zygotic Mynci (8)
Most weeks on Top 40 without reaching No 1: Billy Fury (231 weeks)

text: Weeks on chart by individual singles[edit]

text: Most weeks in the chart by a single:

text:
Top 100: "Mr Brightside" by The Killers (>200 weeks)
Top 75: "My Way" by Frank Sinatra (124 weeks) (122 weeks when only a top 50 was compiled followed by two more in the top 75)
Top 40: "My Way" (75 weeks)[26]

text: Longest consecutive run in the chart by a single*

text:
Top 100: "Thinking Out Loud" by Ed Sheeran (95 weeks)
Top 75: "Rather Be" by Clean Bandit and "Thinking Out Loud" by Ed Sheeran (73 weeks)
Top 40: "Thinking Out Loud" by Ed Sheeran (54 weeks)[27]

text:
Fewest weeks in Top 40 by a No. 1 single (2 weeks): "A Bridge Over You" by Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Choir (2015) and "Wake Me Up" by Gareth Malone's All Star Choir
Fewest weeks in Top 75 by a Top 10 single (1 week)

"Weightless" by Wet Wet Wet
"Leeds Leeds Leeds (Marching On Together)" by Leeds United Team
"Forever Yours" by Alex Day
"Payphone" by Precision Tunes

Fewest weeks in Top 75 by a Top 20 single: 1 week. Notable acts to have achieved this include The Wedding Present 6 times, Garbage, The Chemical Brothers, Elvis Presley and Red 'N' White Machines.

text: Most singles in a year[edit]

text:
Most Top 75 singles in a year: 51 by Glee Cast (2011)
Most singles simultaneously in Top 75: 27 by Michael Jackson (21 solo, 1 with Janet Jackson, 3 as part of The Jackson 5 and 2 as part of The Jacksons) (July 2009).
Most weeks spent on the Top 75 in a calendar year by solo artist: 224 by Rihanna (includes 26 with David Guetta, 18 with Eminem, 18 with Kanye West & Drake, 12 with Nicki Minaj and 2 with Coldplay (2011)).
Most weeks spent on the Top 75 in a calendar year by a group: 134 by Oasis (1996).

text: Simultaneously charting song[edit]

text:
"Unchained Melody" is the only song to have four versions by different artists charting in the Top 20 at the same time (Al Hibbler, Les Baxter, Jimmy Young and Liberace in June 1955).[28]
"Hallelujah" charted in the same week in December 2008 with three artists (Alexandra Burke at No. 1, Jeff Buckley at No. 2, Leonard Cohen at No. 36). It is also the second time in UK single chart where different versions hold the top two spots (the first being Singing the Blues).[29]

text: Longest time between number one hit singles for an artist[edit]

text: Tom Jones went 43 years between his second number one "Green Green Grass Of Home" in 1966 and his next top hit, "(Barry) Islands in the Stream". He had fourteen other singles in the top 10 in that interim time, including four singles to reach the number 2 spot.

text: Album with most original number-one hits[edit]

text: There are three albums which have produced four number-one original hits: Westlife by Westlife ("Swear It Again, "If I Let You Go", Flying Without Wings", and "Fool Again"), Spice by Spice Girls ("Wannabe", "Say You'll Be There", "2 Become 1" and "Mama" / "Who Do You Think You Are") and B*Witched by B*Witched ("C'est la Vie", "Rollercoaster", "To You I Belong" and "Blame It on the Weatherman").

text: Biggest drop out of the Top 10[edit]

text:
Ten biggest drops out of the Top 10

No.
Artist
Single
Top 10
position
Chart position the
following week
Total drop
in places
Week-ending
date

1
Wham!
"Last Christmas"
2
Outside the Top 200
>198
000000002018-01-11-000011 January 2018

2
Carey, MariahMariah Carey
"All I Want For Christmas Is You"
4
Outside the Top 200
>196
000000002018-01-11-000011 January 2018

3
Pogues ft. MacColl, KirstyKirsty MacColl
"Fairytale of New York"
5
Outside the Top 200
>195
000000002018-01-11-000011 January 2018

4
Band Aid
"Do They Know It's Christmas?"
7
Outside the Top 200
>193
000000002018-01-11-000011 January 2018

5
Lee, BrendaBrenda Lee
"Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree"
9
Outside the Top 200
>191
000000002018-01-11-000011 January 2018

6
Stevens, Shakin'Shakin' Stevens
"Merry Christmas Everyone"
10
Outside the Top 200
>190
000000002018-01-11-000011 January 2018

7
Day, AlexAlex Day
"Forever Yours"
4
112
108
000000002012-01-07-00007 January 2012

8
Leeds United Team & Supporters
"Leeds Leeds Leeds (Marching On Together)"
10
112
102
000000002010-05-30-000030 May 2010

9
Pogues, TheThe Pogues
"Fairytale of New York"
9
107
98
000000002008-01-12-000012 January 2008

10
Wet Wet Wet
"Weightless"
10
96
86
000000002008-02-23-000023 February 2008

text: Some singles have been deleted from the charts due to technicalities, and have thus "dropped" out of the Top 10 and the singles chart entirely. Such singles include: "Mrs. Robinson" by Simon & Garfunkel (1969), "Crazy" by Gnarls Barkley (2006) and "Maneater" by Nelly Furtado (2006).

text: Singles to have stalled at Number 2 twice[edit]

text: This unlucky feat has only been achieved five times in chart history:

text:
"Honey" by Bobby Goldsboro on the 1st June 1968 then, on reissue, on the 26th April 1975
"Crazy for You" by Madonna on the 29th June 1985 then, on reissue, on the 29th March 1991
"One for Sorrow" by Steps on the 5th September 1998 then, on reissue, on the 6th October 2001
"All I Want For Christmas Is You" by Mariah Carey on the 17th December 1994 then, on the 15th December 2017
"Last Christmas" by Wham! on the 15th of December 1984 then, on the 4th January 2018

text: Additionally, "When You Tell Me That You Love Me" has been a Christmas number two twice, first in 1991 for Diana Ross, and then in 2005 for Westlife featuring Diana Ross.

text: Longest playing singles to reach Number 1[edit]

text: [citation needed]

text: 11 songs have reached number 1 with a longer playing time than "Bohemian Rhapsody" (5:55):

text:
"All Around the World" by Oasis 9:38
"Mirrors" by Justin Timberlake 8:05
"I'd Do Anything For Love (But I Won't Do That)" by Meat Loaf 7:48
"D'You Know What I Mean?" by Oasis 7:21
"Hey Jude" by The Beatles 7:11
"We Are the World" by USA for Africa 7:05
"Jesus to a Child" by George Michael 6:51
"Belfast Child" by Simple Minds 6:39
"Innuendo" by Queen 6:30
"Frozen" by Madonna 6:12
"I'm Not in Love" by 10cc 6:04

text: Shortest playing single to reach Number 1[edit]

text: "What Do You Want?" by Adam Faith 1:35 (1959) [30]

text: First to...[edit]

text:
Eden Kane (real name Richard Sarstedt) and Peter Sarstedt are the first pair of siblings to score no. 1s as solo artists. Eden Kane scored a no. 1 with "Well I Ask You" in 1961 and Peter Sarstedt got a no. 1 with "Where Do You Go To (My Lovely)" in 1969. A third brother Robin Sarstedt (real name Clive Sarstedt) made the Top 3 in 1976 with "My Resistance Is Low" making them the only set of three brothers to have separate solo Top Three singles.
The first song recorded completely in a foreign language to reach number-one on the UK Singles Charts is "Je t'aime... moi non plus" by Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin in 1969 (French). There are only five other foreign language number-one songs which are "Rock Me Amadeus" by Falco released in 1986 (German), "La Bamba" by Los Lobos released in 1987 (Spanish), "Sadeness (Part I)", by Enigma released in 1990 (Latin/French), "We No Speak Americano", by Yolanda Be Cool Vs DCUP, released in 2010 (Italian/Neapolitan) and "Gangnam Style" by Psy released in 2012 (Korean). (Yolanda Be Cool and DCUP, both being Australian, both spoke English as their first languages, and "We No Speak Americano" even had a title largely in English, but the song was based entirely on a sample of the Italian language "Tu vuò fà l'americano" by Renato Carasone and as a result was completely Neapolitan.)
The first artist to reach No.1 on the UK Official Singles Chart based on both sales and streaming figures was Ariana Grande with "Problem" on 6 July 2014.
The first artist to have singles debut at numbers 1 and 2 simultaneously was Ed Sheeran on 13 January 2017 with "Shape of You" and "Castle on the Hill".
The first artist to have every song from their album enter the top 20 on the singles chart was Ed Sheeran with ÷
The first female artist to have a top ten single in five consecutive decades is Cher (1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s and 2000s). Kylie Minogue follows with a top ten single in four consecutive decades (1980s, 1990s, 2000s and 2010s).
Melanie C is the first female performer to top the charts as a solo artist, as part of a duo, quartet and quintet.[31]