Alexandra Burke's 'Hallelujah' a fast No. 1

December 22, 2008 2008 "X Factor" winner Alexandra Burke had her U.K. Christmas No. 1 single confirmed Sunday, as her version of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" (Syco Music/Sony BMG) debuted at the top with sales of 576,000 units to become the fastest-selling single by a female solo artist in British chart history. The late Jeff Buckley's 1994 version of the song, also publicized during the recent series, raced from No. 30 to No. 2, bringing about the first occasion that the British singles chart has featured the same song in the top two positions for nearly 52 years. To complete an extraordinary week for Cohen, his own 1984 original of "Hallelujah" entered the singles chart at No. 36, giving the Canadian singer-songwriter his first U.K. top 40 hit as an artist, at the age of 74.

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