Monday 5th May 2014 by Alexandra Pollard | Photos by WENN.com

The making of an icon: A timeline of Adele's illustrious career

Chasing Pavements to Rolling In The Deep + more

October 2007: Released her first single, 'Hometown Glory', as a limited edition 7" vinyl, of which only 500 copies were made. The song was written when Adele was 16, and was the first song she ever wrote.

December 2007: Announced as the BBC's Sound of 2008, beating the likes of Foals, Vampire Weekend and MGMT.

January 2008: Released her debut album 19, which reached No.1 in the UK charts on its first week.

February 2008: Awarded the Critics' Choice award at the BRITs.

September 2008: 19 nominated for Mercury Prize for best album. Beaten by Elbow's The Seldom Seen Kid.

February 2009: Received two Grammy Awards - for Best New Artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.

January 2011: Released her second studio album 21, which went on to sell nearly 5 million copies in the UK, and over 10 million in the US.

February 2011: Performed 'Someone Like You' at the BRITs, receiving a standing ovation, and propelling the single up 46 spots in the UK charts to No.1. The performance has received over 153 million views on YouTube.

February 2011: Won in all six of her nominated categories at the Grammy Awards, including Album Of the Year and Song Of The Year, equalling the record for most wins by a female artist in one night.

February 2012: Awarded British Female Solo Artist and Album Of The Year awards at the BRITs.

January 2013: Awarded the Golden Globe for Best Original Song for 'Skyfall', the theme song for the James Bond film of the same name.

March 2013: Awarded the Oscar for Best Original Song, also for 'Skyfall.'

Today (5 May) is Adele's 26th birthday. To celebrate, she sent a tweet hinting that a new album is on its way later this year, and will be called 25. Well, she probably had a few drinks as well - celebrating with a tweet isn't quite the good time it's cracked up to be. But, even if she never releases another song again, Adele has managed to use the quarter of a century she's spent on earth to become a global musical phenomenon.

There was a time, aeons ago, when dinosaurs walked the earth, and Adele was "that woman who sang the pavement song, and sounds like Duffy." That time was 2008. Since then, to say Adele has been catapulted into superstardom would be putting it mildly. To help jog your memory of Adele's journey to the top, we've put together a timeline of her career, from when she produced 500 vinyl copies of her first single, to when she won six Grammys, an Oscar, a Golden Globe, and sold 15 million copies of her album.

Happy Birthday Adele. Keep up the good work.