The Golden Compass hits UK top spot

Fantasy adventure film The Golden Compass debuted at the top of the UK box office this week, taking more than £7.2 million in ticket sales.

Data from AC Nielsen placed the movie, which stars Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig, at number one, followed by festive comedy Fred Claus at number two.

Video game adaptation Hitman occupied third place, while American Gangster followed at number four.

Three family films took places five, six and seven, with Beowulf, Stardust and Ratatouille proving to be fun fare for all ages this winter.

There were no other new entries apart from The Golden Compass this week, but The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, The Darjeeling Limited and Aaja Nachle all made up the rest of the chart.

Meanwhile, a host of new films are set to grace cinema screens this Christmas, giving everyone a chance to enjoy a day at the movies.

Jerry Seinfeld's Bee Movie opens this Friday, as does Dustin Hoffman in Mr Magorium's Wonder Emporium, while St Trinian's and I'm Not There are both set for release on the 21st of the month.

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