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The winner takes it all? The biggest selling X Factor winner's singles revealed
13/12/2014

The X Factor winner's singles
By Justin Myers

They’ve won the show, but who scores the ultimate prize as the biggest-selling winner’s single of them all?

And, just for good measure, how did that all-important debut album do? If you’ve got the time, we’ve got the answers.

The X Factor celebrates 10 years of Saturday night domination and unmissability in 2014, and while we await the coronation of the 11th winner of the ultimate talent show this weekend, we take a look at the 10 who came before.

As diverse artists as they all are, they have at least two things in common – first of all, they won the show and released a winner’s single. And secondly, they all released at least one album.

So when we count out the numbers, who comes out on top? It’s the ultimate display of public approval, the actual purchase of their music. So when the studio lights have gone down and they’re on their own, did their onscreen popularity guarantee them hefty sales?

Winner's singles

It’s a close-run thing when it comes to singles, with the Top 2 artists benefitting from the digital age. There have been four million-selling winner’s singles and it’s pretty close at the top.

1: Alexandra Burke – Hallelujah

The champion is Series 5’s victor Alexandra Burke, who was the first X Factor winner to have her single immediately available for download. Alex still managed to sell over 570,000 physical copies of her cover of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah, and altogether the song cleared a million copies in just four weeks – over 570,000 in its first sales week alone.

It’s sold a total of 1.28 million copies in the UK, giving Alexandra another win to add to her haul.

2: James Arthur – Impossible

Snapping at Alex’s heels is 2012’s winner James Arthur, who scored the fastest-selling single of the year with this Shontelle cover. Impossible has sold 1.27 million copies in the UK.

3: Shayne Ward – That’s My Goal

The second winner of The X Factor, all the way back in 2005, super-talented Shayne Ward was the first winner to score a million-seller. Shayne is also the only champion to release a totally original song – everyone else has launched their career with a cover version.

Despite not having the advantage of convenient downloads when he won, Shayne still shifted an impressive 740,000 copies in his first week on sale. That’s My Goal has sold a total of 1.1 million copies in the UK.

And the rest…

There’s one more million seller thanks to 2010’s winner Matt Cardle, whose Biffy Clyro cover When We Collide has sold 1.01 million copies. Series 3 winner Leona Lewis has a million in her sights – she’s currently on 900,000 with A Moment Like This.

Toward the bottom of the Top 10, last year’s winner Sam Bailey still notched up a respectable 310,000 sales of Skyscraper, a hit for Demi Lovato only months before, while the very first winner of the show Steve Brookstein scores a sales tally of 200,000 for his winning single Against All Odds, originally a hit for Phil Collins and a Number 1 in 1999 for Westlife and Mariah Carey.

Here’s the full Top 10 ranking of all The X Factor’s winning singles so far…

TRACK ARTIST SERIES
1 HALLELUJAH ALEXANDRA BURKE 2008
2 IMPOSSIBLE JAMES ARTHUR 2012
3 THAT'S MY GOAL SHAYNE WARD 2005
4 WHEN WE COLLIDE MATT CARDLE 2010
5 A MOMENT LIKE THIS LEONA LEWIS 2006
6 THE CLIMB JOE MCELDERRY 2009
7 WHEN YOU BELIEVE LEON JACKSON 2007
8 CANNONBALL LITTLE MIX 2011
9 SKYSCRAPER SAM BAILEY 2013
10 AGAINST ALL ODDS STEVE BROOKSTEIN 2004

Debut albums

So once the winning single is out, talk turns to debut albums, but who had the selling power for their long-player? Let’s just say it’s not exactly a close-run thing.

1: Leona Lewis – Spirit

Way out in front of all her fellow winners is 2004’s victor Leona Lewis, whose debut album Spirit has sold an incredible 3.1 million copies, making it one of the bestselling albums of all time in the UK. Leona is behind only Adele and Amy Winehouse when it comes to bestselling albums by Britush female acts. Spirit’s success may well have been helped along, of course, by Leona’s launch single Bleeding Love, which is a million seller and was Number 1 for an astonishing seven weeks.

2: Alexandra Burke – Overcome

Another Top 2 result for our singles’ winner, Alexandra’s debut album Overcome has shifted almost 820,000 copies since its release in 2009. The album contains three Number 1 singles, Hallelujah, Bad Boys and Start Without You.

3: Shayne Ward – Shayne Ward

Good news for Shayne Ward too: he scores Number 3 position in our albums countdown too, with his debut shifting over 530,000 copies.

And the rest…

The only group to win The X Factor, Little Mix, score fourth bestselling debut thanks to DNA, coming in with a sales tally of 350,000 so far. 2009 winner Joe McElderry comes in 10th place, with only 500 or so copies separating him and nearest rival Steve Brookstein.

Here’s the full Top 10 rundown…

ALBUM ARTIST SERIES
1 SPIRIT LEONA LEWIS 2006
2 OVERCOME ALEXANDRA BURKE 2008
3 SHAYNE WARD SHAYNE WARD 2005
4 DNA LITTLE MIX 2011
5 LETTERS MATT CARDLE 2010
6 JAMES ARTHUR JAMES ARTHUR 2012
7 THE POWER OF LOVE SAM BAILEY 2013
8 RIGHT NOW LEON JACKSON 2007
9 HEART AND SOUL STEVE BROOKSTEIN 2004
10 WIDE AWAKE JOE MCELDERRY 2009