Take That have launched to No. 1 on the UK Albums Chart with ‘This Life’, earning the the biggest opening week for a British act of 2023 in the process.
With chart units of 116,000 in its first seven days – 97 per cent of which were on physical formats – the ninth LP from Gary Barlow, Mark Owen and Howard Donald takes them ahead of Lewis Capaldi’s second album, ‘Broken By Desire To Be Heavenly Sent’, which racked up 95,000 chart units in its first week on sale.
They now level with Bob Dylan, Coldplay and Kylie Minogue with nine UK No. 1 albums to their name.
On their Official Charts success, Take That say: “First of all, wow. We’re so grateful our ninth studio album has given us our ninth UK No. 1 record.
“Thank you to our fans from the bottom of our hearts for every bit of love they’ve shown us this year, whether it was coming for a singalong at BST Hyde Park in the summer or streaming and buying the album this week.
“Our focus now turns to the tour next year. We cannot wait to take this show on the road.”
‘This Life’ follows ‘Everything Changes’ (1993), ‘Nobody Else’ (1995), ‘Greatest Hits’ (1996), ‘Beautiful World’ (2006), ‘The Circus’ (2008), ‘Progress’ (2010), ‘III’ (2014) and ‘Odyssey’ (2018), all of which peaked at No. 1.
“It’s been a wonderful experience being back in the studio together making this record. It has that feeling of spreading your wings, letting out the old and bringing in the new,” says the band of their latest album.
“We’re incredibly proud of the new album – there’s a sense of togetherness, whether that’s us coming back together as a band or people wanting connection in their own lives. We’re excited for this new chapter!”
Alongside the LP, the trio will embark on a huge stadium and arena tour in 2024, playing 41 dates across 15 cities around the UK and Ireland, launching in April with shows through July.
They will be joined on the tour by very special guest, Olly Murs.
READ MORE: Take That announce UK tour: dates, tickets and more…
