LONDON, April 26 (Reuters) - Taylor Swift topped the

British music charts on Friday with "The Tortured Poets

Department", outselling the rest of the top ten combined and

beating the Beatles for the record of fastest artist to rack up

12 UK number one albums.

"Poets" delivered the biggest opening week for an album in

the UK in seven years, and means Swift ties Madonna for female

artist with the most UK no. 1 albums in Official Albums Chart

history.

"No other artist has notched up 12 no. 1 albums in such a

short space of time. Taylor Swift has done it in 11 years and 6

months," the Official Charts Company said. "This surpasses The

Beatles, who managed the feat in 14 years and 1 month."

Swift's first single from the album "Fortnight", a

collaboration with Post Malone, topped the UK singles chart.

"Poets" also topped charts in Australia and is set to do the

same in the U.S.

Soon after its release last Friday, Spotify ( SPOT ) and Amazon Music

said the recording was their most streamed album in a day.

On Wednesday, Spotify ( SPOT ) said "Poets" was its most-streamed

album in a single week, surpassing 1 billion streams.

"We're past the stage where you can be surprised by Taylor

Swift's achievements ... every time you think she's reached a

ceiling, she appears to go beyond it with the with the next

release," journalist and music industry expert Mark Sutherland

said.

"She's setting the bar so high in an era when it's much,

much harder to get that kind of universal popularity."

Swift has been setting music industry milestones and

boosting local economies with her Eras Tour, which resumes in

Paris next month.

Time magazine named her its 2023 Person of the Year, citing

her musical feats and wider influence.

Swift announced "Poets" in February at the Grammys, where

she won a fourth Album of the Year prize for her 2022 record

"Midnights".