Taylor Swift dominates the U.K. once again as The Life of a Showgirl opens at No. 1 across six charts, breaking her tie with Elvis Presley and matching The Rolling Stones for career No. 1s. LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 02: Taylor Swift attends the 67th Annual GRAMMY Awards on February 02, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)
Getty Images for The Recording Academy
Taylor Swift easily scores another No. 1 album in the United Kingdom this week as her latest full-length The Life of a Showgirl dominates with one of the greatest starts in years. The set – which earns one of the most impressive launches globally of all time – begins its time atop the Official Albums list, and it continues the superstar’s remarkable winning streak overseas.
The Life of a Showgirl manages to conquer every ranking it debuts on this frame, and as she once again commands the list of the most consumed projects in the U.K., Swift breaks out of a tie with one of the most successful and beloved solo musicians in rock history.
Taylor Swift Breaks Her Historic Tie With Elvis Presley
circa 1955: American rock ‘n roll singer Elvis Presley (1935 – 1977) with a twelve string guitar. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Getty Images
The Life of a Showgirl earns Swift her fourteenth No. 1 on the Official Albums list. As she pushes past her lucky number thirteen, the singer-songwriter breaks her tie with Elvis Presley on the ranking of the artists with the greatest number of champions in U.K. history.
Taylor Swift Matches The Rolling Stones
Swift is now on the same level as The Rolling Stones on the ranking of the musical acts with the most leaders. The two jointly claim the third-most No. 1 albums of all time, as they continue to trail only The Beatles and Robbie Williams, as both have amassed 15 champions.
Taylor Swift Tops Six Charts With The Life of a Showgirl
The Life of a Showgirl debuts at No. 1 on half a dozen charts in the U.K. – every tally on which it appears. In addition to the main list of the most consumed releases, it also opens atop the Official Albums Streaming, Official Album Sales, Official Albums Downloads, Official Physical Albums, and Official Vinyl Albums Sales rankings.
The Life of a Showgirl Earns the Biggest Debut of Taylor Swift’s Career
According to the Official Charts Company, The Life of a Showgirl earns the biggest start of Swift’s career. The set shifted 423,000 equivalent album units in its first seven-day tracking period. That’s the grandest launch since Ed Sheeran’s Divide, which opened with 672,000 units back in 2017.
The Life of a Showgirl Marks Swift’s Third No. 1 of 2025
NEWARK, NEW JERSEY – AUGUST 28: Taylor Swift attends the 2022 MTV VMAs at Prudential Center on August 28, 2022 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Catherine Powell/Getty Images for MTV/Paramount Global )
Getty Images for MTV/Paramount Global
Impressively, Swift has sent three different projects to No. 1 on the Official Albums list in 2025 alone. The Tortured Poets Department, which first conquered in 2024, returned in the spring, while Lover (Live in Paris) hit the highest rung after being reissued on vinyl and becoming a bestseller out of nowhere.
How Many No. 1 Albums Has Taylor Swift Charted?
The Life of a Showgirl helps Swift up her total number of winners on every ranking on which it appears. Just as is the case on the Official Albums list, she has passed double-digit leaders on almost every other tally.
The Life of a Showgirl marks a dozen champions on both the Official Album Downloads and Official Physical Albums lists for Swift. She’s now up to 11 No. 1s on the Official Album Streaming chart and an even 10 on the Official Album Sales tally.
The only list where The Life of a Showgirl leads but Swift has yet to earn 10 or more rulers is the Official Vinyl Albums ranking, though she will likely hit that sum whenever she delivers her next project, as she’s now up to nine winners.
“The Life of Ophelia” Debuts at No. 1 in the U.K.
Per Official Charts Company rules, each musician can only claim three hits at a time on the Official Singles list as a lead act, the most competitive songs ranking. Swift sees the three most popular tunes from The Life of a Showgirl fill the uppermost trio of spaces, as “The Life of Ophelia” becomes her fifth No. 1, while “Opalite” and “Elizabeth Taylor” launch at Nos. 2 and 3, respectively.
All 12 tracks from The Life of a Showgirl appear on the Official Singles Streaming list, where the Grammy winner almost occupies the entirety of the top 10, but just barely misses out on doing so.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/hughmcintyre/2025/10/13/taylor-swift-beats-elvis-presleys-historic-record/
