Blackburn came from behind to beat Burnley in the local rivals' first meeting in the top flight since 1966.
Rovers were stunned when Robbie Blake opened the scoring with a superb 20-yard shot after only four minutes.
But David Dunn equalised with a low drive and Franco Di Santo nodded Rovers ahead after woeful Burnley defending.
Pascal Chimbonda added a third goal for Rovers with a precise finish into the corner before Chris Eagles grabbed a late consolation from six yards.
The win was no more than Rovers deserved after they recovered from being the first home team to concede a goal against Burnley in the league this season.
Blake's excellent strike, curled in from outside the box as Blackburn backed off, set up the derby for a sizzling start in keeping with the feverish atmosphere that had built up for at least an hour before kick-off.
With so much pride at stake between the two old rivals - both clubs being founding members of the Football League - a match of passion and tenacity was expected.
That proved to be the case early on, coupled with a lot of quality - not least the calibre of the goals.
Dunn's effort that cancelled out Blake's opener was also a peach, curled into the corner after on-loan Chelsea striker Di Santo had perfectly laid off Morten Gamst Pedersen's cross
As Rovers continued to press forward, driven on by the impressive Dunn, they created another chance but El-Hadji Diouf could only drag his shot wide.
Burnley, for all their attempts to play their way out of trouble, were struggling to keep Rovers at bay.
And the visitors contributed to their downfall when goalkeeper Brian Jensen fell under no challenge when trying to deal with a cross and Graham Alexander headed the ball up for Di Santo to nod into an empty net.
If that goal was a messy effort, Rovers' next strike was much more pleasing to the eye.
Pedersen headed cleverly into the path of Chimbonda and the defender cut inside Steven Fletcher before slotting a shot into the far corner.
At that stage it looked a long way back for Burnley, who had yet to secure a point on their travels in this campaign.
By contrast, Rovers looked to have found some confidence and were comfortably in control.
The pattern remained similar after the interval as Burnley's lack of firepower prevented them from forcing a way back into the match.
Unable to take advantage of a spell of possession, Burnley were short of ideas and could only muster a weak effort from Fletcher and a header from Steven Caldwell.
And at the other end, the uncertain Jensen almost dropped another clanger when he allowed Paul Robinson'kick to bounce and was lucky to see his opposite number's clearance go over the bar.
Robinson tried to repeat the trick moments later and once again Jensen was almost found out, needing his defenders to hack the ball away.
Burnley did manage to get a sight on goal when substitute Eagles was played in by Wade Elliott but he hesitated and the chance was gone.
Elliott also worked an opening for Alexander a little later, but the shot was blocked.
There was definite improvement from Burnley and Eagles fired a low shot narrowly wide as they pressed to reduce the deficit.
And moments later, Eagles gave Burnley a chance of pulling off an unlikely comeback when he turned in Stephen Jordan's cross.
However, Blackburn held out for the last few minutes and almost had the final word when Pedersen blazed a volley over the bar.
Arsenal 3 - 1 Birmingham
Arsenal were not quite at their clinical best but still proved too strong for Birmingham at the Emirates.
Robin van Persie opened the scoring with a precise, low drive across goal after Alex Song had played him in.
Abou Diaby doubled the lead when he smashed in a rising shot before Lee Bowyer volleyed in after Vito Mannone's mistake to halve Birmingham's deficit.
Substitute Andrey Arshavin shot wide and Robin van Persie hit the bar before Arshavin curled in to seal the points.
Arshavin's strike came at a time when Birmingham were threatening to get an equaliser but overall, the Gunners were good value for the three points that moves them up to fourth in the Premier League table.
The only blemish on the Gunners' afternoon was an injury suffered by Theo Walcott, who had started a match for the first time this season but was forced off on the half-hour mark after failing to shake off the after-effects of a robust challenge by Liam Ridgewell.
England winger Walcott had been one of three changes for Arsenal, with Kieran Gibbs playing at left-back and Mannone keeping his place in goal despite Manuel Almunia's return to fitness.
Walcott had started brightly and tested Blues keeper Joe Hart with a curling shot that came at the end of a strong run before he was replaced by Arshavin.
Arsenal had already posted warnings of their attacking intent by then, with Tomas Rosicky twice getting in good positions only to fail to connect properly with volleys.
It must have made uncomfortable viewing for new Birmingham owner Carson Yeung as he sat in the stands as president of the club for the first time since he completed his takeover.
Yeung has promised to make £40m available for new players but any green shoots of recovery that may come from that potential cash injection look a long way off on this showing.
Fielding a team with four changes from that side that lost to Burnley, the visitors, who had lost four of their last five league games going into the match, struggled to keep pace with their opponents.
And they were soon undone by Song's fine through ball and Van Persie's equally well-placed finish gave Arsenal the lead.
Moments later, Arsenal worked a great opening with some fluid football, and Diaby arrived at the far post to hammer home Rosicky's cross.
Birmingham's first effort at goal came form Sebastian Larsson, but his free-kick was pushed away by Mannone.
However, the Italian keeper was soon to make a costly mistake when he flapped at a cross and succeeded only in patting the ball down at the feet of Bowyer, who dispatched the ball into an empty net.
Arsenal almost restored their two-goal lead when Arshavin took a snap shot but Joe Hart made a decent low stop to his right.
Birmingham started the second half well and Cameron Jerome's ball almost reached Lee Bowyer via Barry Ferguson as Arsenal looked vulnerable.
But the hosts hit back and Arshavin dragged a shot wide when he looked set to score before Cesc Fabregas was just about kept out by Hart.
As Arsenal began to assume full control once more, they were presented with an indirect free-kick in the area after Larsson was harshly judged to have played a deliberate back pass.
From the set-piece, Van Persie smashed the ball against the top of the bar.
Arsenal then suffered a scare when Ridgewell's cross looked certain to be turned in before Mannone made up for his earlier error by clawing the ball away from two waiting Blues players.
But the home side's nerves were settled when Arshavin cut in from the right and curled a sweet shot into the far corner.
Arsenal might have had a fourth goal but Hart made a fine save to deny Diaby from close range and Van Persie's shot was blocked by Ridgewell.
Robin van Persie opened the scoring with a precise, low drive across goal after Alex Song had played him in.
Abou Diaby doubled the lead when he smashed in a rising shot before Lee Bowyer volleyed in after Vito Mannone's mistake to halve Birmingham's deficit.
Substitute Andrey Arshavin shot wide and Robin van Persie hit the bar before Arshavin curled in to seal the points.
Arshavin's strike came at a time when Birmingham were threatening to get an equaliser but overall, the Gunners were good value for the three points that moves them up to fourth in the Premier League table.
The only blemish on the Gunners' afternoon was an injury suffered by Theo Walcott, who had started a match for the first time this season but was forced off on the half-hour mark after failing to shake off the after-effects of a robust challenge by Liam Ridgewell.
England winger Walcott had been one of three changes for Arsenal, with Kieran Gibbs playing at left-back and Mannone keeping his place in goal despite Manuel Almunia's return to fitness.
Walcott had started brightly and tested Blues keeper Joe Hart with a curling shot that came at the end of a strong run before he was replaced by Arshavin.
Arsenal had already posted warnings of their attacking intent by then, with Tomas Rosicky twice getting in good positions only to fail to connect properly with volleys.
It must have made uncomfortable viewing for new Birmingham owner Carson Yeung as he sat in the stands as president of the club for the first time since he completed his takeover.
Yeung has promised to make £40m available for new players but any green shoots of recovery that may come from that potential cash injection look a long way off on this showing.
Fielding a team with four changes from that side that lost to Burnley, the visitors, who had lost four of their last five league games going into the match, struggled to keep pace with their opponents.
And they were soon undone by Song's fine through ball and Van Persie's equally well-placed finish gave Arsenal the lead.
Moments later, Arsenal worked a great opening with some fluid football, and Diaby arrived at the far post to hammer home Rosicky's cross.
Birmingham's first effort at goal came form Sebastian Larsson, but his free-kick was pushed away by Mannone.
However, the Italian keeper was soon to make a costly mistake when he flapped at a cross and succeeded only in patting the ball down at the feet of Bowyer, who dispatched the ball into an empty net.
Arsenal almost restored their two-goal lead when Arshavin took a snap shot but Joe Hart made a decent low stop to his right.
Birmingham started the second half well and Cameron Jerome's ball almost reached Lee Bowyer via Barry Ferguson as Arsenal looked vulnerable.
But the hosts hit back and Arshavin dragged a shot wide when he looked set to score before Cesc Fabregas was just about kept out by Hart.
As Arsenal began to assume full control once more, they were presented with an indirect free-kick in the area after Larsson was harshly judged to have played a deliberate back pass.
From the set-piece, Van Persie smashed the ball against the top of the bar.
Arsenal then suffered a scare when Ridgewell's cross looked certain to be turned in before Mannone made up for his earlier error by clawing the ball away from two waiting Blues players.
But the home side's nerves were settled when Arshavin cut in from the right and curled a sweet shot into the far corner.
Arsenal might have had a fourth goal but Hart made a fine save to deny Diaby from close range and Van Persie's shot was blocked by Ridgewell.
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Aston Villa 2 - 1 Chelsea
Aston Villa delivered a blow to Chelsea's title ambitions by inflicting a second successive away defeat on the pre-match Premier League leaders.
Chelsea took the lead when Brad Friedel failed to deal with a speculative long-range effort from Didier Drogba, but they failed to capitalise.
An unmarked Richard Dunne headed the home side level after Ashley Young's corner flicked off Frank Lampard.
James Collins headed the winner from another Young corner to stun Chelsea.
It was Collins' first goal in four years as Chelsea's defence was uncharacteristically exposed again at a set piece.
Two seasons ago, Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich left Villa Park before the end of a 2-0 defeat by Martin O'Neill's side. Two weeks later then manager Jose Mourinho was dismissed.
Current Blues' coach Carlo Ancelotti has no concerns as far as his job security goes, but he will have been deeply unhappy with the lack of concentration at the back which allowed Villa to get back into the game.
Villa, with frustrated England striker Emile Heskey again confined to the bench by O'Neill until the final eight minutes, should take plenty of confidence from a hard-earned victory.
After a quiet opening, the game exploded into life when emergency referee Kevin Friend - called in at the last minute after Steve Bennett was taken ill - waved away Villa appeals for a penalty.
On closer inspection, Jose Bosingwa had wrapped his arm all over Gabriel Agbonlahor's shoulder, preventing him from capitalising on Stilyan Petrov's cross with only Petr Cech to beat.
Chelsea, fortunate not to concede a penalty, quickly poured forward, James Milner denying Florent Malouda with a smart tackle. But on their next attack the west London club took the lead.
Drogba skilfully turned Collins, but was still about 35 yards out when firing his shot at the Villa goal.
Friedel should have had the effort comfortably covered, but the 38-year-old American was deceived by the dip and bounce of the shot, and had to hide his embarrassment as he picked the ball out of net.
Chelsea, no doubt fortified by the goal, tended to offer more in the way of a threat going forward - so it was a bit of a surprise to see Villa grab an equaliser.
It had an element of fortune about it, as Lampard's attempted clearing header from Young's corner served up a chance on a silver platter for Dunne. The Republic of Ireland defender buried his header from close range.
But Chelsea now produced their best football of the half. Friedel, atoning for his earlier error, had to back-pedal furiously to tip a cheeky chip from the consistently excellent Deco over the top right-hand corner.
And a neat move of short passes played across the edge of the Villa area presented Drogba with an excellent chance, whereupon Collins produced a terrific block, throwing his body into the path of the shot.
The Blues' defence was found wanting early in the second half, however, when another corner from Young proved too much to deal with.
This time the winger picked out Collins on the far post, who was given vast swathes of undefended territory in which to rise up to nod the ball down, back across goal and into the net.
John Terry reacted by jumping around the box like a toddler with a tantrum, but the only way Chelsea could respond was to attack once again.
Chelsea took the lead when Brad Friedel failed to deal with a speculative long-range effort from Didier Drogba, but they failed to capitalise.
An unmarked Richard Dunne headed the home side level after Ashley Young's corner flicked off Frank Lampard.
James Collins headed the winner from another Young corner to stun Chelsea.
It was Collins' first goal in four years as Chelsea's defence was uncharacteristically exposed again at a set piece.
Two seasons ago, Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich left Villa Park before the end of a 2-0 defeat by Martin O'Neill's side. Two weeks later then manager Jose Mourinho was dismissed.
Current Blues' coach Carlo Ancelotti has no concerns as far as his job security goes, but he will have been deeply unhappy with the lack of concentration at the back which allowed Villa to get back into the game.
Villa, with frustrated England striker Emile Heskey again confined to the bench by O'Neill until the final eight minutes, should take plenty of confidence from a hard-earned victory.
After a quiet opening, the game exploded into life when emergency referee Kevin Friend - called in at the last minute after Steve Bennett was taken ill - waved away Villa appeals for a penalty.
On closer inspection, Jose Bosingwa had wrapped his arm all over Gabriel Agbonlahor's shoulder, preventing him from capitalising on Stilyan Petrov's cross with only Petr Cech to beat.
Chelsea, fortunate not to concede a penalty, quickly poured forward, James Milner denying Florent Malouda with a smart tackle. But on their next attack the west London club took the lead.
Drogba skilfully turned Collins, but was still about 35 yards out when firing his shot at the Villa goal.
Friedel should have had the effort comfortably covered, but the 38-year-old American was deceived by the dip and bounce of the shot, and had to hide his embarrassment as he picked the ball out of net.
It had an element of fortune about it, as Lampard's attempted clearing header from Young's corner served up a chance on a silver platter for Dunne. The Republic of Ireland defender buried his header from close range.
But Chelsea now produced their best football of the half. Friedel, atoning for his earlier error, had to back-pedal furiously to tip a cheeky chip from the consistently excellent Deco over the top right-hand corner.
And a neat move of short passes played across the edge of the Villa area presented Drogba with an excellent chance, whereupon Collins produced a terrific block, throwing his body into the path of the shot.
The Blues' defence was found wanting early in the second half, however, when another corner from Young proved too much to deal with.
This time the winger picked out Collins on the far post, who was given vast swathes of undefended territory in which to rise up to nod the ball down, back across goal and into the net.
John Terry reacted by jumping around the box like a toddler with a tantrum, but the only way Chelsea could respond was to attack once again.
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Everton 1 - 1 Wolverhampton
Diniyar Bilyaletdinov slid home a dramatic late equaliser as Everton denied Wolves a priceless away win.
Wolves edged a tame first half but the game came to life after the interval.
Kevin Doyle put the visitors ahead when he raced on to huge clearance by keeper Wayne Hennessey and nonchalantly flicked the ball under Tim Howard.
But Bilyaletdinov levelled from Jo's cross in a frantic finale which also saw Wolves substitute Stefan Maierhofer sent off after two yellow cards.
Such a thrilling finish seemed highly unlikely after a tepid opening period short on goalmouth incident and excitement.
Despite coming off the back off a six-game unbeaten run, Everton made a sluggish start. They created just two chances in the opening period, the best of which was wated by Tim Cahill.
A long pass upfield fell to Louis Saha whose poor attempt to control the ball allowed Cahill to race through to the edge of the box, but he rushed his attempt and the ball sailed over the bar
Saha was then unable to keep a headed chance down from a corner, and that was about as good as it got for the hosts.
Wolves, beaten 1-0 at home by previously winless Portsmouth in their last outing, could have been forgiven for packing the defence and settling for a point against an Everton side unbeaten in six.
But boss Mick McCarthy has faith in his young side's attacking prowess.
The fact he was able to include one of his star men Michael Kightly from the start for the first time this season was a huge boost.
And although winger Kightly failed to have an impact, their attacking threat was provided by the lively front pairing Sylvan Ebanks-Blake and record signing Doyle.
It was the first time McCarthy has been able to pair them in attack this term, and the duo were a constant menace to Everton's defence.
Wolves edged a tame first half but the game came to life after the interval.
Kevin Doyle put the visitors ahead when he raced on to huge clearance by keeper Wayne Hennessey and nonchalantly flicked the ball under Tim Howard.
But Bilyaletdinov levelled from Jo's cross in a frantic finale which also saw Wolves substitute Stefan Maierhofer sent off after two yellow cards.
Such a thrilling finish seemed highly unlikely after a tepid opening period short on goalmouth incident and excitement.
Despite coming off the back off a six-game unbeaten run, Everton made a sluggish start. They created just two chances in the opening period, the best of which was wated by Tim Cahill.
A long pass upfield fell to Louis Saha whose poor attempt to control the ball allowed Cahill to race through to the edge of the box, but he rushed his attempt and the ball sailed over the bar
Saha was then unable to keep a headed chance down from a corner, and that was about as good as it got for the hosts.
Wolves, beaten 1-0 at home by previously winless Portsmouth in their last outing, could have been forgiven for packing the defence and settling for a point against an Everton side unbeaten in six.
But boss Mick McCarthy has faith in his young side's attacking prowess.
The fact he was able to include one of his star men Michael Kightly from the start for the first time this season was a huge boost.
And although winger Kightly failed to have an impact, their attacking threat was provided by the lively front pairing Sylvan Ebanks-Blake and record signing Doyle.
It was the first time McCarthy has been able to pair them in attack this term, and the duo were a constant menace to Everton's defence.
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Man Utd 2 - 1 Bolton
Manchester United moved top of the Premier League with a nervy victory over Bolton at Old Trafford.
The champions took an early lead when Michael Owen's header was deflected into his own net by Zat Knight.
After Antonio Valencia lashed home his first goal for United, the hosts looked to be cruising to the three points.
But Matt Taylor headed in from Kevin Davies' cross and Bolton began to flood forward in search of an equaliser, only to be denied by some dogged defending.
Sir Alex Ferguson's men will be mightily relieved to have secured the win, which was far from convincing but sees them go a point clear of Chelsea after the Blues were beaten at Aston Villa earlier on Saturday.
Such was their dominance, United seemed to switch off mid-way through the second half and were fortunate not to be punished as Bolton laid siege to their goal.
They will have to raise their game for the trips to CSKA Moscow in the Champions League on Wednesday and then Liverpool in the league four days later.
Bolton, who drop a place to 13th, will feel their late rally was worthy of a point but, in truth, they would have been out of contention far earlier had United taken a few more of their numerous chances.
A seventh straight defeat at Old Trafford looked likely for Bolton as early as the fourth minute when Owen found himself unmarked to meet Ryan Giggs' precise cross with a glancing header.
The ball was heading wide but, unfortunately for the visitors, it struck Knight's leg and trickled into Jussi Jaaskelainen's net.
Owen, benefitting from Wayne Rooney's calf injury to make only his second league start for United, was at the heart of United's electrifying start.
The 29-year-old was one of eight changes to United's starting line-up and caused the Bolton defence no shortage of problems in the opening exchanges.
United's outstanding performer, however, was Giggs and the 35-year-old winger almost set up a second as his cross from the right was headed goalbound by Jonny Evans, only for Jaaskelainen to save brilliantly on to a post.
Bolton's five-man midfield was providing little cover for their back four - but to their credit they did get forward to support lone striker Davies whenever possible.
On one such occasion, Davies escaped the attentions of Rio Ferdinand but headed wide from an unmarked position following Sam Ricketts' centre.
Nine of Bolton's 10 league goals this season have come from set pieces and they almost continued that sequence when Taylor drove wide after Davies had chested down Gary Cahill's long punt forward.
But United were in a comfort zone and reasserted their authority with a second goal, Valencia playing a one-two with Gary Neville before drilling a powerful strike past Jaaskelainen.
Bolton had the first chance of the second half, Knight heading Taylor's free-kick straight at Edwin Van der Sar, but United, and in particular, Dimitar Berbatov ensured they were soon under the cosh once more.
The champions took an early lead when Michael Owen's header was deflected into his own net by Zat Knight.
After Antonio Valencia lashed home his first goal for United, the hosts looked to be cruising to the three points.
But Matt Taylor headed in from Kevin Davies' cross and Bolton began to flood forward in search of an equaliser, only to be denied by some dogged defending.
Sir Alex Ferguson's men will be mightily relieved to have secured the win, which was far from convincing but sees them go a point clear of Chelsea after the Blues were beaten at Aston Villa earlier on Saturday.
Such was their dominance, United seemed to switch off mid-way through the second half and were fortunate not to be punished as Bolton laid siege to their goal.
They will have to raise their game for the trips to CSKA Moscow in the Champions League on Wednesday and then Liverpool in the league four days later.
Bolton, who drop a place to 13th, will feel their late rally was worthy of a point but, in truth, they would have been out of contention far earlier had United taken a few more of their numerous chances.
A seventh straight defeat at Old Trafford looked likely for Bolton as early as the fourth minute when Owen found himself unmarked to meet Ryan Giggs' precise cross with a glancing header.
The ball was heading wide but, unfortunately for the visitors, it struck Knight's leg and trickled into Jussi Jaaskelainen's net.
Owen, benefitting from Wayne Rooney's calf injury to make only his second league start for United, was at the heart of United's electrifying start.
The 29-year-old was one of eight changes to United's starting line-up and caused the Bolton defence no shortage of problems in the opening exchanges.
United's outstanding performer, however, was Giggs and the 35-year-old winger almost set up a second as his cross from the right was headed goalbound by Jonny Evans, only for Jaaskelainen to save brilliantly on to a post.
Bolton's five-man midfield was providing little cover for their back four - but to their credit they did get forward to support lone striker Davies whenever possible.
On one such occasion, Davies escaped the attentions of Rio Ferdinand but headed wide from an unmarked position following Sam Ricketts' centre.
Nine of Bolton's 10 league goals this season have come from set pieces and they almost continued that sequence when Taylor drove wide after Davies had chested down Gary Cahill's long punt forward.
But United were in a comfort zone and reasserted their authority with a second goal, Valencia playing a one-two with Gary Neville before drilling a powerful strike past Jaaskelainen.
Bolton had the first chance of the second half, Knight heading Taylor's free-kick straight at Edwin Van der Sar, but United, and in particular, Dimitar Berbatov ensured they were soon under the cosh once more.
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Portsmouth 1 - 2 Tottenham
Harry Redknapp celebrated his return to Fratton Park with a win that kept old club Portsmouth bottom of the table.
The home fans' reception for Redknapp was in reality mild, but the opening exchanges were highly charged.
Ledley King headed Spurs ahead from a Niko Kranjcar corner before Jermain Defoe volleyed in their second.
Kevin-Prince Boateng pulled one back moments before Defoe saw red for stamping, but Spurs held on and Pompey had Michael Brown sent off at the end.
Aruna Dindane had a golden first-half opportunity to put Pompey ahead but ballooned over an open goal inside the six-yard box.
Both match-day squads featured three players who had played for the opposition in recent times, Defoe, Kranjcar and substitute Peter Crouch for Spurs, and Brown, Boateng and Younes Kaboul for Portsmouth.
Striker Defoe, fit after missing England's final World Cup qualifiers, was in the thick of the action from the outset.
He was spoken to by referee Phil Dowd in the first few seconds after a heated exchange of views with former Spurs player Brown.
The lively Defoe then burst through but England keeper David James saved his low shot comfortably.
He was in on goal again after a neat through ball from Tom Huddlestone, but the fierce low drive came back off the post with James beaten.
Portsmouth, with only one league win so far and unsettled by recent changes of ownership, showed plenty of endeavour, with the spirited Boateng at the heart of most of their attacks.
Dindane is likely to see his glaring miss repeated several times on calamity-based football compilations, while Spurs keeper Heurelho Gomes, who has endured some calamities of his own, produced some magical saves, most notably an acrobatic one-handed tip over while diving in the opposite direction after Boateng's free-kick was sharply deflected.
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Stoke 2 - 1 West Ham
James Beattie's brace helped Stoke end a run of five Premier League games without a win while extending West Ham's winless run to seven games.
The striker smashed in a penalty after Matthew Etherington had been felled by Julien Faubert but Matthew Upson levelled with a free header.
Beattie tucked in Stoke's winner after Ricardo Fuller's angled shot had been pushed into his path by Robert Green.
Stoke's Robert Huth appeared to punch Upson late on but escaped punishment.
Referee Martin Atkinson and his fellow officials missed the incident despite the England centre-back being forced to leave the field with blood pouring from a wound near to his right eye.
Upson had been caught in the face by a stray Ryan Shawcross boot earlier in the game and Huth's flailing right arm, while the players were waiting for a West Ham free-kick to be delivered into the box, re-opened the wound.
Stoke ultimately deserved their victory for a typically tenacious and high-energy performance that unsettled the Hammers from the outset.
Pulis defends Stoke 'style'
Etherington, who played 195 times for West Ham, provided most of the early threat for the home side.
He raced on to Fuller's clever back-heeled pass before being scythed down by Faubert, who was booked for his challenge, to win the penalty.
Beattie's strike from the spot was clinical, flying beyond West Ham keeper Green's dive into his top right-hand corner.
Left winger Etherington then appeared on the right before cutting in on his favoured foot, but James Tomkins deflected his 25-yard effort wide.
West Ham, by contrast, were struggling to string passes together, although much of that was down to Tony Pulis's well-drilled Stoke side as to the failings of the Hammers to find their own players.
Alessandro Diamanti had their first shot on target some 30 minutes into the game, but even that came from a set-piece after he was fouled by Salif Diao.
The Italian picked himself up, but tamely struck the 30-yard free-kick straight at Thomas Sorensen in the Stoke goal.
But the Hammers were level a couple of minutes later when an uncharacteristic lapse of confidence in the home defence gifted them an equaliser.
It came from another set-piece as defender Upson was allowed to rise unchallenged eight yards out and powerfully nod in Mark Noble's corner.
After the break, West Ham boss Gianfranco Zola pushed Diamanti further forward to help top scorer Carlton Cole, who had spent the first half playing as a lone striker and being well marshalled by Stoke centre-back Shawcross.
Zola's decision almost paid dividends straight away as the midfielder produced a neat turn on the edge of the box, but his left-footed curling effort was comfortably saved by Sorensen, who later held a low striker from the Italian.
Stoke's forays forward were becoming increasingly rare, although Shawcross did momentarily leave his defending duties on Cole to head goalwards.
Shawcross' effort was blocked by Valon Behrami and he blazed the follow-up wide.
The centre-back was soon back on defensive alert though to block an effort from Cole, who had escaped his attention for the first and only time of the afternoon.
It proved a crucial intervention as moments later Beattie scored the winner.
Fuller skipped past Upson's challenge and raced into the box and when his angled low shot was pushed away by Green, the Stoke striker was on hand to turn the ball in from close range.
West Ham brought on striker Zavon Hines, but the youngster was unable to proved the spark West Ham needed.
And as the Hammers pushed more and more men forward in search of a second equaliser, Stoke were able to exploit the gaps opening up at the other end of the pitch.
And Etherington almost had the last word, but his header from Liam Lawrence's cross flew just wide.
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Sunderland 1 - 0 Liverpool
Liverpool's stuttering season took a turn for the worse as they were beaten by a Sunderland side who went above them in the Premier League table.
The Black Cats went ahead when a Darren Bent shot was allowed to stand after deflecting in off a beach ball, which a Reds fan had thrown on to the pitch.
Bent then headed just wide before hitting the post with an angled shot.
Sunderland keeper Craig Gordon pulled off a double save from Dirk Kuyt and David Ngog late on to secure the win.
A fourth defeat of the league season will only add to the question marks over Liverpool's title credentials after they were outplayed without injured midfielder Steven Gerrard and striker Fernando Torres.
Ahead of a week in which they face a crucial Uefa Champions League tie against Lyon and host Manchester United, they only added weight to critics who label them a two-man team.
Liverpool were lethargic and looked at unease with a 5-4-1 formation manager Rafael Benitez had opted for as he tried to cope with injuries and tiredness after the recent internationals.
Benitez was probably hoping that full-backs Glen Johnson and Fabio Aurelio, as well as wingers Ryan Babel and Yossi Benayoun, would have more of an impact going forward.
But Sunderland, with a near-capacity 47,000 crowd behind them, did not let Liverpool settle and aggressively took control of the game before being rewarded with the lead in somewhat fortunate circumstances.
Bent's shot went in off a beach ball and, to compound Liverpool's misery, it was one punched on to the pitch by one of their own fans.
Bruce doubts Bent's 'balloon goal'And, despite protests from the Liverpool camp, referee Mike Jones deemed the goal legal - despite the rules of football suggesting he should have awarded a dropped ball - with Bent's tally for the season going to eight.
Sunderland were the opposite of Liverpool as they showed the greater desire and dynamism, with the midfield axis of Lorik Cana and Lee Cattermole proving a forceful and tireless presence.
The home side's manager had challenged his players to produce the consistency in performance which earned an impressive 2-2 draw at Manchester United last time out and they did not disappoint.
Liverpool were limited to long-range strikes and Babel, Aurelio and Premier League debutant Jay Spearing each put efforts wide as Sunderland's defence stood firm.
Bent nearly added to Sunderland's lead when he got on to the end of a Phil Bardsley cross - after Reina had missed the ball - but the striker's glanced header went agonisingly wide.
He also pounced on a Martin Skrtel's headed passback only to nod past Reina and shoot against the outside of the post from a tight angle.
Sunderland suffered the loss of influential duo Cattermole and striker Kenwyne Jones, but coped admirably as they held off a Liverpool side lacking ideas.
The Black Cats went ahead when a Darren Bent shot was allowed to stand after deflecting in off a beach ball, which a Reds fan had thrown on to the pitch.
Bent then headed just wide before hitting the post with an angled shot.
Sunderland keeper Craig Gordon pulled off a double save from Dirk Kuyt and David Ngog late on to secure the win.
A fourth defeat of the league season will only add to the question marks over Liverpool's title credentials after they were outplayed without injured midfielder Steven Gerrard and striker Fernando Torres.
Ahead of a week in which they face a crucial Uefa Champions League tie against Lyon and host Manchester United, they only added weight to critics who label them a two-man team.
Liverpool were lethargic and looked at unease with a 5-4-1 formation manager Rafael Benitez had opted for as he tried to cope with injuries and tiredness after the recent internationals.
Benitez was probably hoping that full-backs Glen Johnson and Fabio Aurelio, as well as wingers Ryan Babel and Yossi Benayoun, would have more of an impact going forward.
But Sunderland, with a near-capacity 47,000 crowd behind them, did not let Liverpool settle and aggressively took control of the game before being rewarded with the lead in somewhat fortunate circumstances.
Bent's shot went in off a beach ball and, to compound Liverpool's misery, it was one punched on to the pitch by one of their own fans.
Bruce doubts Bent's 'balloon goal'And, despite protests from the Liverpool camp, referee Mike Jones deemed the goal legal - despite the rules of football suggesting he should have awarded a dropped ball - with Bent's tally for the season going to eight.
Sunderland were the opposite of Liverpool as they showed the greater desire and dynamism, with the midfield axis of Lorik Cana and Lee Cattermole proving a forceful and tireless presence.
The home side's manager had challenged his players to produce the consistency in performance which earned an impressive 2-2 draw at Manchester United last time out and they did not disappoint.
Liverpool were limited to long-range strikes and Babel, Aurelio and Premier League debutant Jay Spearing each put efforts wide as Sunderland's defence stood firm.
Bent nearly added to Sunderland's lead when he got on to the end of a Phil Bardsley cross - after Reina had missed the ball - but the striker's glanced header went agonisingly wide.
He also pounced on a Martin Skrtel's headed passback only to nod past Reina and shoot against the outside of the post from a tight angle.
Sunderland suffered the loss of influential duo Cattermole and striker Kenwyne Jones, but coped admirably as they held off a Liverpool side lacking ideas.
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