Harry Potter makes UK video history

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone has become the most successful UK video and DVD release of all time.

Warner Home Video say more than 1.25 million copies were sold yesterday on the first day of its release.

The previous record was held by the film Titanic, which achieved 1.1 million sales in 1997.

Neil McEwan, managing director of Warner Home Video said: "We are delighted that Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone has officially become the fastest selling video ever in UK history, ahead of the current record holder Titanic.

"The demand for this video has been unprecedented and the results have exceeded all our expectations."

The company shipped five million copies of the hit film to stores across Britain after anticipating a massive demand when it went on sale at midnight on Friday.

Tens of thousands of fans have already ordered their copy of the hit film over the Internet, with online retailer Amazon.co.uk taking a record 36,000 pre-orders.