Adele overtakes Michael Jackson in all-time biggest selling albums chart

The Official Charts Company can today reveal that sales of Adele’s 21 have overtaken those of Michael Jackson’s Bad in the UK.

Adele’s second album, 21, smashed the 4 million sales barrier after her BRITs performance last week and went on to bag the Number 1 spot on the Official Albums Chart for its 21st non-consecutive week at the summit. It has now sold nearly 61,000 more copies than The King Of Pop’s classic 1987 album, Bad.

Released on January 24, 2011, 21 has spent 57 weeks on the Official Albums Chart and has never left the Top 10. In just over a year it has sold over 4,020,000 copies, making it not only the biggest selling album of the 21st Century, but also the eighth biggest selling album of all time. If 21’s post-BRITs momentum continues, in the next few weeks it could also eclipse sales of Pink Floyd’s 1973 album Dark Side Of the Moon (7) and Dire Straits’ 1985 album, Brothers In Arms (6).

“This is another incredible achievement to cap a year of incredible achievements for Adele,” comments the Official Charts Company’s managing director Martin Talbot. “By overtaking Bad, 21 has truly, officially cemented Adele’s place among the all-time greats. Who would bet against her improving further on that achievement, by taking steps towards the all-time Top 5?”

See where all of Adele's songs and albums charted.

The Official Top 10 biggest selling albums of all time are as follows:

01 GREATEST HITS – QUEEN (5,863,000)
02 SGT PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND – THE BEATLES (5,044,000)
03 GOLD: GREATEST HITS – ABBA (4,989,000)
04 WHAT'S THE STORY MORNING GLORY – OASIS (4,517,000)
05 THRILLER - MICHAEL JACKSON (4,248,000)
06 BROTHERS IN ARMS - DIRE STRAITS (4,152,000)
07 THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON - PINK FLOYD (4,114,000)
08 21 – ADELE (4,020,000)    
09 BAD - MICHAEL JACKSON (3,959,000)
10 GREATEST HITS II – QUEEN (3,887,000)

© 2012 THE OFFICIAL CHARTS COMPANY.