Ed Sheeran's hit single "Thinking Out Loud" has become the first to spend a whole year inside the UK's Top 40, proving that the singer-songwriter certainly has staying power despite his critics.

The love ballad is the 26th bestselling track of the decade so far as well as one of the country's 161 million-selling singles, the Official Charts Company can confirm.

Sheeran, 24, also celebrated his latest album x logging an impressive 52 consecutive weeks in the Official Albums Chart. That's right, 365 days later it's still at number 28.

To date, x has spent 12 non-consecutive weeks at number one and is at number five this week. Total sales have reached 2.23 million and it is currently the fifth bestselling album of the decade. Songs from x have been streamed a massive 298 million times.

Other artists who have come close to rivalling Sheeran's successes include Pharrell Williams, whose chart-topper "Happy" spent 49 consecutive weeks in the Top 40, and John Legend's "All of Me", a mainstayer for 44 consecutive weeks.