Waves of people joined a stampede to be among the first to buy the Hollywood blockbuster Titanic as the most successful film of all time was launched on video as it went on sale last night.

The Virgin Megastore and HMV, Cornmarket Street, and Blockbuster, Cowley Road, opened at midnight to cope with the demand for the film, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslett, which smashed all box office records.

Gary Walker, music department manager at the Virgin Megastore, said: "It was one of our better midnight openings. We had a big crowd outside for the initial rush, but they were the people who really wanted the film. We are expecting more people in today."

Manager of the HMV store, Geoff Keeling, said the launch of the video had been a great success, with more than 100 copies of the film sold at the midnight opening.

Almost 500 stores opened across the country ready for the rush for Titanic - and distributor 20th Century Fox expects to sell five million copies by Christmas.

Britain's biggest selling video to date is Disney's Jungle Book which has sold 4,500,000 copies since 1992. Titanic, selling at £16.99, or £17.99 for the widescreen version, is expected to set a new record.

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