A first for a debut: UK band One Direction tops US charts
Nick Clark
Nick Clark is the arts correspondent of The Independent. He joined the newspaper in June 2007, initially reporting on the stock markets. He has covered beats including the City, and technology, media and telecoms and made the switch to arts in December 2011. He has also contributed articles to the sports section.
Thursday 22 March 2012
One Direction, who rose to fame on The X Factor, have become the first British pop group to go straight to No 1 in the US charts with their debut album.
Up All Night has sold more than 176,000 copies in just a week. It beat the previous highest entry by a UK band, which The Spice Girls achieved when their debut, Spice, went in at No 6 in 1997.
The boy band – Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne and Louis Tomlinson – were signed by Simon Cowell's music label, Syco, after they finished third on The X Factor.
Their debut album went in at No 1 in the UK as well as in 12 other countries as sales ticked past 4.2 million. More than 10,000 fans turned up in New York's Rockefeller Plaza to see their first live television performance.
Arts & Ents blogs
Children’s Books: Recommended read – ‘A Monster Calls’ by Patrick Ness
Thirteen-year-old Conor awakes in bed one night to discover that the yew tree outside his house has ...
Made in Chelsea – Series 5, Episode 11: Louise plays and wins at Spencer’s game
It’s hard not to feel sorry for doe-eyed Andy. He spends months pining after Louise, has huge nostr...
The Returned: ‘Simon’ – Series 1, episode 2
Fragility of life looms large over an episode that closes with the scarring on Julie's stomach. Whil...
-
Kan you believe it? Kim Kardashian and Kanye West reportedly name baby daughter 'Kaidance Donda'
-
Film review: World War Z - Brad Pitt's zombie action flick is surprisingly infectious
-
Theatre review: Daniel Radcliffe gives an admirably honest performance in Michael Grandage's The Cripple of Inishmaan - but his Irish accent isn't quite there
-
Anger Management? Charlie Sheen fires Selma Blair as his onscreen therapist with expletive-filled text
-
Vice pulls 'breathtakingly tasteless' fashion shoot glorifying the suicides of famous female authors from Sylvia Plath to Virginia Woolf
- 1 Serena Williams apologises after comment that rape victim 'shouldn't have put herself in that position'
- 2 Disability campaigners celebrate 'victory' after government rethink over plans to make it more difficult to claim disability benefits
- 3 Bankers could face jail after report urges the Government to introduce new criminal offence for reckless management
- 4 Breaking the Silence: In the reality of occupation, there are no Palestinian civilians – only potential terrorists
- 5 We never knew Nigella Lawson - and we still don’t
How will you make today delicious?
Tell us how you plan to make today delicious and you could win a £50 M&S gift card.
Win a Nook® Simple Touch eReader
Find out how Nook® is supporting the Evening Standard's Get Reading campaign - and your chance to win one.
Free reading festival for families
Follow The Standard's campaign to get London's children reading - and experience this unique event at Trafalgar Square on 13 July.
Enter the latest Independent competitions
Win anything from gadgets to five-star holidays on our competitions and offers page.
Business videos from commercial thought leaders
Watch the best in the business world give their insights into the world of business.
First night: The Cripple of Inishmaan
Scandi-geeks descend on Nordicana for fan-convention
Female aristocrats battle to inherit the title


Comments