Sam Smith's The Thrill Of It All is heading for Number 1 on this week's Official Albums Chart

Sam Smith looks set to return to the top of the charts this week as his latest album, The Thrill Of It All, takes an early lead on the latest Official Albums Chart Update.

Since its release three days ago (Nov 3), the singer's second studio album has shifted just over 60,000 across physical, download and streaming equivalent sales. 

Sam's debut album In The Lonely Hour sold 102,000 in its opening week in June 2014 to open at Number 1. The collection went on to spend eight non-consecutive weeks at the top and is set to return to the Top 20 this week, currently at 19. 

MORE: Check out this week's Top 100 Official Albums Chart Update in full

Sam's closest competition this week comes from a new Roy Orbison album, called A Love So Beautiful. The album, a collection of his best known songs and fan favourites re-worked by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, is currently at Number 2, 40,000 units behind Sam. 

If it holds on to the Number 2 spot, Love So Beautiful will equal 1989's Mystery Girl as his highest ever album chart position for a studio album. Two of his greatest hits collections have previously hit the top spot (1975's The Best Of... and 1988's The Legendary...).

Last week's Number 1 album, Michael Ball & Alfie Boe's Together Again, slips to 3, George Michael's Listen Without Prejudice holds at 4, and Pink's Beautiful Trauma is at 5. 

MORE: See where all of Sam Smith's singles and albums have charted

New entries and high climbers 

Bryan Adams's new retrospective, Ultimate, stars at Number 6 and could earn him a tenth Top 10 album, while Maroon 5's sixth album Red Pill Blues currently sits just outside the Top 10 at Number 11. 

MORE: The UK's biggest selling albums of 2017 so far

Actress and singer Sheridan Smith is at 12 with her debut album Sheridan, Bob Dylan's Trouble No More - The Bootleg Series 13 is at Number 13, and South London rapper Dave is currently at 14 with his new album Game Over. 

Elsewhere in the Top 20, Harry Styles's self-titled debut is leaping back up the chart following his recent BBC special, currently up from 38 to 16, and Welsh singer and radio presenter Aled Jones is at 17 with his final record in his One Voice trilogy, One Voice: Believe.

Further down, three new albums are on course to land inside this week's Top 40: Swedish band Lost Horizons are at 24 with Ojala, US country-pop singer Kelsea Ballerini at 25 with Unapologetically, and Jane McDonald's Hold Back The Covers at 32.

Check out this week's Top 100 Official Albums Chart Update in full