The UK Singles Chart is the official record chart in the United Kingdom. Record charts in the UK began life in 1952 when Percy Dickins from ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') imitated an idea started in American ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' magazine and began compiling a hit parade. Prior to this, a song's popularity was measured by the sales of

sheet music Sheet music is a handwritten or printed form of musical notation that uses List of musical symbols, musical symbols to indicate the pitches, rhythms, or chord (music), chords of a song or instrumental Musical composition, musical piece. Like ...

. Initially, Dickins telephoned a sample of around 20 shops asking for a list of the 10 best-selling songs. These results were then aggregated to give a Top 12 chart published in ''NME'' on 14 November 1952. The number-one single was " Here in My Heart" by Al Martino. According to The Official Charts Company and

Guinness Guinness () is an Irish dry stout that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness at St. James's Gate, Dublin, Ireland, in 1759. It is one of the most successful alcohol brands worldwide, brewed in almost 50 countries, and available in ove ...

' '' British Hit Singles & Albums'', the ''NME'' is considered the official

British singles chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

before 10 March 1960. However, until 15 February 1969, when the British Market Research Bureau chart was established, there was no universally accepted chart. Other charts existed and different artists may have placed at number one in charts by ''Record Mirror'', '' Disc'' or ''

Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. It was founded in 1926, largely as a magazine for dance band musicians, by Leicester-born ...

''. Alternatively, some considered BBC's '' Pick of the Pops'', which averaged all these charts, to be a better indicator of the number-one single. In terms of number-one singles,

Frankie Laine Frankie Laine (born Francesco Paolo LoVecchio; March 30, 1913 – February 6, 2007) was an American Singing, singer, songwriter, and actor whose career spanned nearly 75 years, from his first concerts in 1930 with a marathon dance company to hi ...

, Guy Mitchell and Elvis Presley were the most successful artists of the 1950s having four singles reach the top spot. The longest duration of a single at number one was eighteen weeks achieved by Frankie Laine's " I Believe". , "I Believe" still holds the record for the most (non-consecutive) weeks at the top of the UK Singles Chart. Although official

music recording sales certification Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

s were not introduced until the British Phonographic Industry was formed in 1973, '' Disc'' introduced an initiative in 1959 to present a gold disc to records that sold over one million units. Prior to that it is believed that the three best-selling records of the decade—

Bill Haley & His Comets Bill Haley & His Comets were an American rock and roll band founded in 1947 that continued until Haley's death in 1981. The band was also known as Bill Haley and the Comets and Bill Haley's Comets. From late 1954 to late 1956, the group record ...

' "

Rock Around the Clock "Rock Around the Clock" is a rock and roll song in the 12-bar blues format written by Max C. Freedman and James E. Myers (the latter being under the pseudonym "Jimmy De Knight") in 1952. The best-known and most successful rendition was record ...

", Paul Anka's "

Diana Diana most commonly refers to: * Diana (name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Diana (mythology), ancient Roman goddess of the hunt and wild animals; later associated with the Moon * Diana, Princess of Wales (1961–1997) ...

" and Harry Belafonte's "

Mary's Boy Child "Mary's Boy Child", also known as "Mary's Little Boy Child", is a 1956 Christmas song, written by Jester Hairston. It is widely performed as a Christmas carol. History The song had its genesis when Hairston was sharing a room with a friend. The ...

"—all sold over one million copies.

Number-one singles

By artist

The following artists achieved three or more number-one hits during the 1950s. Artists

, Guy Mitchell and Elvis Presley were the most successful acts of the decade in terms of number-one singles, each having four singles reach the top of the chart. In total, Laine spent 32 weeks occupying the top of chart in the 1950s; the next highest was Presley who spent a total of 18 weeks at number one.

By record label

The following record labels had five or more number ones on the UK Singles Chart during the 1950s.

Notes

References

;Footnotes ;Sources * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:List of UK Singles Chart Number Ones Of The 1950s 1950s in British music

1950s The 1950s (pronounced nineteen-fifties; commonly abbreviated as the "Fifties" or the " '50s") (among other variants) was a decade that began on January 1, 1950, and ended on December 31, 1959. Throughout the decade, the world continued its re ...