Soap stars dominate fitness video chart

12 February 2010: Total sales of fitness videos rose over six per cent in January 2010 on the same period in 2009, according to new figures released today by the British Video Association using data from the Official Charts Company. The top 10 best sellers include workouts led by the UK’s favourite soap actresses, TV presenters and pop stars, showing that a home work out with the stars is still as popular as ever.

Former Eastenders actress Hannah Waterman tops the 2010 January sales chart this year with Hannah Waterman’s Body Blitz (Universal Pictures) selling almost 75,000 units. Waterman outsold fellow former Eastenders star Jessie Wallace - tenth in the January sales chart - with almost 13,000 sales of her Jessie Wallace Look at Me Now  (2 entertain). Over the past five years of an Eastenders-dominated fitness video chart, the Queen of the East End workout remains Charlie Brooks who topped the January sales chart in 2006 selling almost 104,000 units of her Before and After Workout DVD,  just beating Natalie Cassidy who, in 2008, peeked at just over 100,000 units of Natalie Cassidy Then and Now. The total sales of Charlie Brooks’ Before and After is over 250,000, copies whilst Natalie Cassidy has sold just over 215,000 units.

Davina McCall maintains her presence in the top ten fitness chart with another video workout released this year.  Davina Fit (2 entertain) sold just over 55,000 units in January and is the TV presenter’s fifth consecutive year in the top ten fitness chart.  In total Davina has sold over 830,000 DVDs since 2006*, positioning herself as the nation’s favourite home fitness motivator.

Lavinia Carey, Director General of the British Video Association, says, “This January’s growth in fitness DVD is undoubtedly down to the huge diversity available in routines, music and presenters. Whilst this year’s chart shows that soap stars are once again extremely good at motivating the nation, the variety of titles on offer from TV presenters, pop stars and professionals means there is something out there for everyone when it comes to New Year’s resolutions and working off the excesses of the festive season.”
_{*Davina’s all-time aggregated sales exceed 1 million units.}

Notes to editors:

The British Video Association
Video encompasses the home entertainment industry as a whole – from packaged media such as DVD and Blu-ray Discs through to digital services onto portable devices and for home consumption, with ever increasing consumer choice of access and price points. The industry releases about 8,000 titles a year and the BVA champions all content delivery channels.

For more information, please contact: Esme Knight (020 7618 9157) or Stephanie Blott (020 7618 9165).

Visit www.bva.org.uk
UK official Blu-ray website: www.thisisbluray.co.uk
Visit also www.findanyfilm.com
Official UK Charts are at www.theofficialcharts.com

Overall sales for January 2006 – 2010

 Top Ten Fitness Titles – January 2010

Top Ten Fitness Titles – January 2009

Top Ten Fitness Titles – January 2008

Top Ten Fitness Titles – January 2007

Top Ten Fitness Titles – January 2006