Vinyl record sales in the UK last week overtook those of digital downloads, as the once-dying music format experiences a resurgence in popularity. 

Once the domain of grandfathers, hipsters and electronic music DJs, vinyl has come back into fashion in the UK, with high street supermarkets like Sainsbury's and Tesco stocking LPs and boutique record stores popping up across the UK. 

Vinyl sales hit £2.4 million last week, outpacing the £2.1 million spent on digital music downloads.

The figures hint at some huge shifts within the music industry, with vinyl sales having doubled in the past year while those of digital music purchases have halved, as more and more listeners shift to music streaming services such as Spotify. 

Buying a vinyl record gave fans a more tangible way of demonstrating support for their favourite artists, Entertainment Retailers Association CEO Kim Bayley told the Guardian.

"People have become keen to support their favourite artists by buying into that ownership concept. It’s very difficult to demonstrate your love of an artist if you don’t have something to hold on to.”

Not that this new penchant for physical records comes cheap. David Bowie's final album Black Star costs £7.99 to download off Amazon but more than twice that on vinyl, while Kate Bush's triple-disc Before the Dawn will set you back £52 if you want it on disc. 

Even ERA CEO Mr Bailey could not deny the steep cost. "The markup on vinyl now is ridiculous," he admitted.