Sgt Pepper is overtaken by Abba album

Abba’s greatest hits collection has overtaken The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band to become the UK’s second biggest-selling album of all time, according to the Official Charts Company.

By The Newsroom

Published 20th May 2013, 10:16 BST

While both albums have sold over 5.1 million copies in the UK, the Swedish band’s 1992 Gold collection has now nudged ahead of The Beatles’ 1967 album by nearly 15,000 copies.

An estimated one in five British households owns a copy of either Gold or Sgt Pepper’s.

Bjorn Ulvaeus, who co-wrote Abba hits including Dancing Queen, Knowing Me Knowing You and The Name of the Game said: “It feels unreal – outselling the greatest record of all time.”

Queen’s 1981 Greatest Hits album remains the country’s most popular, with recorded sales of 5.9 million.