Welcome to James Masterton's Chart Watch UK – your essential weekly deep dive into the Official UK Charts!
As the longest-running British music column online, we bring you the ultimate guide to this week's Top 40, unraveling the stories behind the biggest new singles and chart-topping hits. Plus, explore our extensive archives, a treasure trove of nearly 1800 articles documenting three and a half decades of popular music history and expert analysis.
Dead. Dance. Two words that don't generally go together, but then again so don't a lot of things in Lady Gaga's world. She has the "true" highest new entry with a suitably horror-themed video. But the big singles are all entrenched - and that means Huntr/X edging towards a 56 year old chart record.
Sabrina Carpenter is as surprised as we are that her new album doesn't quite give her the chart domination of before. The second-highest opening week of the year, but a clean sweep of Top 3 singles for the second time in 12 months was just way beyond her. Also: more cartoons. Even if it is a golden oldie
Doja Cat is back, back baby with a new single that possibly doesn't quite make the splash its creators intended. When you are cleverer and more versatile than Sabrina Carpenter, why would you want to ape her? Meanwhile it is Olivia Dean's week. Even if No.1 is still way out of sight.
Raise a glass Olivia Dean. In the space of a few months you have gone from perennial almost-there to one of the big breakout stars of the year. Side by side Top 10 hits and the highest new erntry of the week as well. Who needs a man under those circumstances?
