David Bowie tops chart hours after death

David Bowie has topped the UK album chart with his new record Blackstar less than 24 hours after his death.

The music legend released his 25th studio record on Friday (08Jan16), the date of his 69th birthday, and he lost his battle with cancer just two days later.

Bowie's music dominated the airwaves on Monday (11Jan16) in the hours after the sad news was announced, and chart officials in the UK have now confirmed the huge surge in streaming and downloads sent Blackstar to the number one spot.

An update issued by executives at Britain's Official Albums Charts Company on Monday (11Jan16) revealed Blackstar had scored combined sales so far of 43,000, placing it 25,000 ahead of his closest competitor, Elvis Presley's If I Can Dream at two, and Adele's 25 at three.

"Today is an awful day for all lovers of music. And the fact that David Bowie's new album Blackstar was on course for Number 1 this week, even before today's terrible news says everything about his continuing relevance..." Official Charts Company chief executive Martin Talbot declared. "But we are expecting a huge surge for a wide range of Bowie albums in this week's Official Albums Chart... Fans are clearly reminding themselves of his massive contribution to popular music by buying these great, iconic works."

The chart positions will be made official on Friday (15Jan16).