James Arthur overtakes The Smile and The Reytons in race for Number 1 album

There's been a serious overnight development in the race for this week's Official Number 1 album, coming in the form of James Arthur.

When we last left things, Radiohead spin-off group The Smile (looking to secure their first-ever Number 1 album with Wall of Eyes) and The Reytons (seeking their second chart-topper with Ballad of a Bystander) were this week's frontrunners with little over 200 chart units separating the two. 

But now another contender has raced ahead for the top spot on the Official Albums Chart - James Arthur has pulled off a stunning coup throughout the night, leapfrogging both The Smile and The Reytons to become the act to beat for Number 1 on Friday with this fifth studio album, Bitter Sweet Love.

Adding over 5,000 units overnight - mostly comprised of physical sales of the album - James now has a clear lead over yesterday's leaders; nearly 4,000 chart units now separate him from his nearest competition, The Smile.

But with four days of tracking left until the result will be announced live by Jack Saunders on BBC Radio 1, it is still all to play for.

Bitter Sweet Love would be James's second UK Number 1 album; he previously reached the summit in 2016 with his second record, Back From the Edge, which contained his UK Number 1 single Say You Won't Let Go.

The former X Factor winner has also seen all of his previous albums chart inside the UK Top 10; 2013's self-titled debut (2), 2019's You (2) and 2021's It'll All Make Sense In The End (3). 

Currently, The Smile have slid down to Number 2 with Wall of Eyes, while The Reytons are at Number 3 with Ballad of a Bystander. We're still looking for another Top 4 new entry from Tom Odell's latest, Black Friday (4).

Other prospective new entries in this week's Top 10 still include Future Islands' People Who Aren't There Anymore (6), Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes' Dark Rainbow (8), New Model Army's Unbroken (9), and Welsh artist Gruff Rhys's Sadness Sets Me Free (10).