Taylor Swift's 'Life of a Showgirl' storms UK charts, sets new records

LONDON (Reuters) -Taylor Swift set records and topped the UK music charts on Friday, with her new album "The Life of a Showgirl" powering straight to No.1 and three of its tracks also taking the top spots. The U.S. singer-songwriter released her 12th studio album last week and in less than 11 hours, it became Spotify's most-streamed album in a single day in 2025. Despite mixed reviews, Swift's latest offering has been lapped up by her huge global fan base. In Britain, it became her 14th No.1 album, "securing the biggest opening week of the year in just three days…. (and ending) the week on a staggering 423,000 combined chart units", the Official Charts Company said. Its first week of release was the biggest in Britain since Ed Sheeran’s "Divide" in 2017 and the biggest opening week for an international album in Britain this century, it added. "The Life of a Showgirl" set records for different formats, including the most first-week album downloads in 2025 and the most UK album streams in a week, with streaming contributing 84,000 stream-equivalent sales. For vinyl, it became the UK’s fastest-selling album this century with 126,000 sales, and the biggest one-week vinyl sale since modern chart records began in 1994. The album's opening track "The Fate of Ophelia" topped the UK singles chart, followed by songs "Opalite" and "Elizabeth Taylor" at No.2 and No.3 respectively. "Her list of achievements this week is extraordinary, not least the fact that 'The Life of a Showgirl' has just registered comfortably the biggest first week in the UK of her career," Martin Talbot, Chief Executive of the Official Charts, said in a statement. In Australia, Swift set another record, with the album's 12 songs taking the top 12 positions on the ARIA singles chart. She also topped the ARIA albums chart. Swift is expected to break more records and top charts elsewhere, including in the United States. (Reporting by Marie-Louise GumuchianEditing by Frances Kerry)

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