X Factor winner James Arthur has notched up his third week at number one in the charts with his debut single Impossible - despite a strong challenge from Britney Spears and will.i.am. The 24-year-old fought off competition from The Voice judge and the X Factor USA judge who have teamed up on the duet Scream and Shout - but had to be content with the number two position despite the midweek charts suggesting they were on course for the top spot. It is the third week at the top for James although the track has spent four weeks in the charts, being knocked off the top spot in the Christmas chart by the Justice Collective's He Ain't Heavy He's My Brother. The song is the fastest-selling debut single from an X Factor victor in series history and has now shifted almost a million copies. It also became the fastest selling single since Hallelujah, the debut effort from 2008 series champion Alexandra Burke. So far Impossible - a cover of the Shontelle single - has also sold more copies than the debut efforts from Little Mix, Joe McElderry, One Direction, JLS and Olly Murs sold during their entire chart run. The track was released on December, just moments after James Arthur was crowned 2012 X Factor winner ahead of Jahmene Douglas.
