Lists of UK Albums Chart number ones

This is a list of the number one hits in the UK Albums Chart, from its inception in 1956 to the present. The sources are the Record Mirror chart from 1956 to the end of 1958, the Melody Maker chart from November 1958 to March 1960, the Record Retailer chart from March 1960 to March 1972 and the Music Week chart from then onwards. In January 1989 the compilation album chart started, and compilation albums were excluded from the main chart.

• List of UK Albums Chart number ones of the 1950s
• List of UK Albums Chart number ones of the 1960s
• List of UK Albums Chart number ones of the 1970s
• List of UK Albums Chart number ones of the 1980s
• List of UK Albums Chart number ones of the 1990s
• List of UK Albums Chart number ones of the 2000s
• List of UK Albums Chart number ones of the 2010s
• List of UK Albums Chart number ones of the 2020s

The first number one album was Frank Sinatra's Songs for Swingin' Lovers!.^[1] For its first few years the chart was usually topped by a musical soundtrack or original cast recording, but rock albums steadily gained ground. Rock was dominant after the release of The Beatles first LP, Please Please Me, in 1963, except for the two and a half year spell later in the 1960s when the soundtrack of The Sound of Music went to the top of the charts repeatedly. As of the week ending 1 December 2013, Robbie Williams' tenth studio album Swings Both Ways became the 1,000th album to become number 1.^[1]

Records

The original soundtrack of South Pacific holds the record for the most weeks at Number 1, with a cumulative total of 115 weeks, including one stretch of 70 consecutive weeks.^[2] A fairly distant second place is held by The Sound of Music soundtrack with a cumulative total of 70 weeks. Third is The King and I soundtrack with a cumulative total of 48 weeks. Fourth is the highest non soundtrack Bridge over Troubled Water by Simon and Garfunkel with a cumulative total of 33 weeks.

The second longest consecutive streak is held by The Beatles' Please Please Me, which spent 30 weeks at the top before being knocked off by the band's second album, With the Beatles, which was itself at the summit for 21 weeks. This means The Beatles were at number one for 51 consecutive weeks in all - a total not bettered by any other artist.

See also

• Lists of albums
• List of artists by number of UK Albums Chart number ones
• List of UK Singles Chart number ones
• List of one-hit wonders on the UK Albums Chart
• Lists of UK Compilation Chart number ones
• Lists of UK Dance Albums Chart number ones
• Lists of UK Independent Albums Chart number ones
• List of UK Albums Chart Christmas number ones
• Lists of UK Album Downloads Chart number ones
• Lists of UK Rock & Metal Albums Chart number ones
• Lists of UK R&B Albums Chart number ones

References

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UK music charts

UK singles

Number ones	1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s Number one artists Most number ones Christmas Posthumous Scottish One-hit wonders in Scotland Instrumental Simultaneous UK and U.S. Simultaneous with album
Top tens	1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 Most top tens
Best-selling	1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s (decade) 2010s 1900s 21st century All time Yearly Most-downloaded (2000s) Most streamed Million-sellers Platinum singles (pre-2000) Platinum singles (post-2000) Most weeks on chart One-hit wonders Records and statistics

UK albums

Number ones	1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s Most number ones Number-one in most decades Christmas Posthumous Simultaneous UK and U.S. Simultaneous with single
Top tens	1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 Most top tens
Best-selling	1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s (decade) 2010s 21st century All time Yearly Most weeks on chart One-hit wonders

Genre charts

Number ones	Afrobeats Singles Americana Albums Christian & Gospel Albums Classical Artist Albums Country Airplay Dance (singles/albums) Indie (singles/albums) Indie Breakers (singles/albums) Jazz & Blues Albums R&B (singles/albums) Rock & Metal Singles and Albums Specialist Classical Albums

Other charts

Current	Album Downloads Albums Streaming Audio Streaming Compilations Midweeks Progressive Record Store (2010s/2020s) Singles Downloads (2000s/2010s/2020s) List of UK Singles Sales Chart number ones UKHot40 Vinyl Albums Vinyl Singles The Official Big Top 40
Former	1952–1969 1Xtra Classical Singles Number-one EPs Fab 40 Fresh 40 Hit40UK Mersey Beat The Network Chart Show NME Official Subscription Plays Chart Pepsi Chart Pick of the Pops Record Mirror Top Pops

Related

• Charts Plus
• Hit Music
• Media Research Information Bureau
• Music Week
• Official Charts Company
• The Official Chart
• Timeline of chart shows on UK radio
• UK Video Charts
• British Hit Singles & Albums
• The Virgin Book of British Hit Singles
• UKChartsPlus

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