According to nationwide sales figures, Gareth Gates’s debut single, ‘Unchained Melody’ looks rather unlikely to equal the record-breaking sales of ‘Pop Idol’ victor, Will Young’s No.1 single, ‘Evergreen/Anything Is Possible’.

HMV stores across the UK have established the fact that Gareth’s single is nowhere near his ‘Pop Idol’ rival, although it has done relatively well. Also, HMV chart expert, Gennaro Castaldo, said that there’s a clear-cut regional bias to Gareth’s sales, with ‘Unchained Melody’ selling strongly in cities like Leeds, Newcastle and Gareth’s hometown of Bradford.

In Birmingham, where Gareth’s virgin solo single has performed less well, Paul O’ Brian from HMV commented “I’d say it’s definitely the second best seller this year. It’s doing very well but it’s down by roughly half on Will’s first day sales. We’ve mostly had adults coming in and buying the single, but maybe the kids’ purchases will have an impact come the weekend”.In Manchester, Ian Depasois, a spokesperson for HMV, said: “Sales have been nowhere near as good here this time around and sales of Gareth’s single are down in comparison to Will’s. I’ve had no calls so far asking about ‘Unchained Melody’. It’s been disappointing”.

In other news, Gareth has now signed a profitable advertising deal to promote Wella Shock Waves hair gel, buzzed around to be worth GBP1 million. Plans at the moment include a billboard, a magazine campaign and the possibility of television ads.

Gareth’s earnings now look set to top those of Will Young. So far, Gareth has signed contracts and earned royalties worth an estimated GBP2.7 million while Will has earned GBP650000 from the 1.1 million sales of his No. 1 chart-topper ‘Evergreen/Anything Is Possible’. Last week Gareth signed an advertising deal with Pepsi.

Anyway, surf your way onto Gareth’s official website: www.ggates.co.uk.