Popstars smash Britney record

Pop phenomenon Hear'Say

LONDON, England -- A pop group created by the television show Popstars has smashed Britney Spears' record for the fastest-selling debut single in British history.

The pop sensation Hear'Say, better known simply as Popstars after the programme that spawned them, sold 160,995 copies of their first single Pure and Simple after its UK release on Monday.

Pure and Simple is also the hot favourite to reach number one on the British charts on Sunday but needs to sell 464,000 copies to break Spears' record for the biggest first-week sales for a debut.

Spears' 1999 hit, Baby One More Time, sold 127,970 copies on its first day, reaching number one in both the UK and U.S. charts.

Britney's loses debut record sales title

But even that number is a far cry from "Candle in the Wind," Elton John's memorial tribute to the late Princess Diana, which sold 655,000 copies on its first day of release in 1997.

As part of the huge commercial venture, the group have even been immortalized as miniature dolls, following in the footsteps of The Spice Girls.

Myleene, Kym, Suzanne, Danny and Noel, members of the group, are the product of a hit television series that auditioned thousands of young pop hopefuls in a bid to make it big in the music industry.

Reuters contributed to this report.

TV popstars favourite to top UK charts
February 2, 2001

HearSay
Popstars

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