Friday 2nd January 2015 by Andy Morris | Photos by Wenn

British acts take over best-selling charts for first time

A great 12 months for homegrown talent

Disclosure: Given the success of their Sam Smith collaboration 'Latch', it would be easy to suggest that Disclosure are riding to America on Smith's coat tails. But once you've heard 'F For You', or 'White Noise' or 'Help Me Lose My Mind', it becomes clear that Disclosure are no one-hit US wonder.

Coldplay: Coldplay have been a mainstay across the pond since One Direction were a twinkle in their parents' eyes, but with their latest album Ghost Stories, they outdid themselves. As of Octber, it's sold 701,000 copies.

Clean Bandit: It's still relatively early days for Clean Bandit in terms of their US domination, but with a No.10 single under their belt in the form of 'Rather Be', it's looking more than promising.

Sam Smith: He might have won the BBC's Sound of 2014, but it looks like the good people of America want him to be theirs too - his debut album, In The Lonely Hour, has sold over half a million copies in the US.

Jessie J: With her first two albums, the singer's success was far greater in her own country, but it looks like her third, thanks in part to collaborations with Ariana Grande, Nicki Minaj and 2Chainz is going to catapult her up the billboards chart. So far, her first single, 'Bang Bang', has reached No.3.

Arctic Monkeys: Actually, there isn't really a country Arctic Monkeys aren't absolutely massive in, thanks to the phenomenal success of their AM album, the wave of which they are still riding a year later. The album reached the top 10 in the US, and has sold just under 200,000 copies there. Find them playing arenas and headlining US festivals until the end of the year.

Royal Blood: They can boast Metallica, Muse and Rage Against The Machine as amongst their fans, and their debut album has already cracked the top 40 in the US. Not bad for a rock duo from Worthing.

Ed Sheeran: His first album was successful enough, but with second album, x (Multiply), Sheeran multipied his overseas success to ridiculous proportions. It reach No.1, and was the largest debut for a pop album this year in the US, selling 210,000 copies in its first week. Good work, Ed.

Charli XCX: After successfully teaming up with Icona Pop on 'I Love It' and Iggy Azalea on 'Fancy', Charli XCX well and truly smashed the US charts in her own right with solo single 'Boom Clap', which reached the coveted top 10.

Alt-J: They insist their success hinges on word of mouth, so there must be a hell of a lot of mouths on their side to have catapulted their second LP, This Is All Yours, to No.4 in the US albums charts. They're also playing the iconic Madison Square Garden next year, which is massive.

Tags: Ed Sheeran, Sam Smith, George Ezra

Thanks to the huge success of the like of Ed Sheeran, Sam Smith and George Ezra, the top ten best-selling albums of the year all belonged to homegrown talent - for the first time ever.

In the strongest chart showing since the Official Charts record began, Ed Sheeran's X has sold 1.7 million copies and Sam Smith's In The Lonely Hour 1.25 million. Sheeran’s sales in particular are so impressive that they are now the highest since Adele’s chart conquering 21 in 2011.

Nearly half a million of these sales (425,619) came in the last two weeks of the chart year, driven mainly by Christmas presents. X was additionally the most popular digital album of 2014, with 471,194 copies downloaded. All this will explain precisely how Sheeran as a solo artist has alreadt managed to sell out three nights at Wembley Stadium in July 2015.

Joining Sheeran and Smith in the top ten are fellow British acts who have achieved huge success both at home and abroad, including George Ezra, Paolo Nuttini and Coldplay.

The top 10 best-selling album in the UK during 2014 were:

1. Ed Sheeran – X
2. Sam Smith – In The Lonely Hour
3. George Ezra – Wanted On Voyage
4. Paolo Nutini – Caustic Love
5. Coldplay – Ghost Stories
6. Paloma Faith – A Perfect Contradiction
7. One Direction – Four
8. Olly Murs – Never Been Better
9. Pink Floyd – The Endless River
10. Take That – III

In terms of vinyl releases, Pink Floyd's first studio album in over 20 years led the pack. Although the chart was still heavily dominated by reissues, recent releases from Arctic Monkeys, Jack White and Foo Fighters also made the top ten best sellers.

1. Pink Floyd - The Endless River
2. Arctic Monkeys - AM
3. Royal Blood - Royal Blood
4. Oasis - Definitely Maybe
5. Pink Floyd - The Dark Side of the Moon
6. Jack White - Lazaretto
7. The Stone Roses - The Stone Roses
8. Foo Fighters - Sonic Highways
9. Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin
10. Oasis - (What’s The Story) Morning Glory?