Kevin Macdonald's Touching The Void has overtaken Bowling For Columbine as the highest grossing documentary in UK box office history.

Released by Pathe Distribution on December 12, and now in its eleventh week in cinemas, the Bafta winning film has so far taken $3.17m (£1.68m). By comparison, Bowling For Columbine took $3.15m in 2002.

Pathe expects the documentary to gross over $3.8m (£2m).

Other top documentaries at UK theatres include 1991's In Bed With Madonna which took $2.36, 1999's Buena Vista Social Club ($1.8m) and last year's Etre Et Avoir ($1.3m).

Touching The Void was produced by John Smithson of Darlow Smithson for FilmFour, and was made with the support of the UK Film Council New Cinema Fund in association with Channel 4 and PBS.

Touching The Void won the Alexander Korda Award for Outstanding British Film of the Year at the recent BAFTA Awards as well as the Evening Standard's Best Film Award.

Exchange rate: £1=$1.8880.