SIR PAUL McCARTNEY

29 £760m Music

His daughter Stella described him as a "tight bastard" and he flies economy, but there is more to McCartney than parsimony. In February, he accepted $1m to play at a private party but gave the money to the Adopt-A-Landmine charity, which his wife supports, and when he was married last summer he turned down £1.5m for the wedding pictures. McCartney turned 60 last summer and did the exact opposite of slowing down. His marriage to the former model Heather Mills, 26 years his junior, did not win unqualified approval - his children were reported to be upset - but his fans have continued flocking to his shows. More than 1m showed up on his tour of America last year. This, according to Billboard Boxscores, which keeps a tally of touring income, meant he had the largest grossing world tour of 2002 - £82m from 58 shows. Three concerts at the Tokyo Dome and two at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas were particularly lucrative, together making £13m. His live album, Back in the US, also sold 1m copies in the United States. His European tour, Back in the World, his first for 10 years, kicked off in Paris on March 25 and is due to finish in Dublin at the end of May. McCartney should have made at least £35m from the touring, although the money has not filtered through to his companies' accounts yet. But even here all is well, thanks to the huge success of the Beatles 1 album in 2001. Apple Corps, the Beatles' main company, saw its turnover shoot up from £11.5m to £50.9m in 2001-02, paying out £7.5m to McCartney in fees and £3m in dividends. In addition, Maclen Joint Ltd, which receives the songwriting royalties accruing to Lennon and McCartney, saw its turnover jump to £10.2m in 2001 and paid out £2.45m to McCartney. He is spending a little of his cash, buying a seafront house from television presenter Derek Jameson in Brighton. He also has a house in St John's Wood, London, an East Sussex estate, a farm on the Mull of Kintyre and an Arizona ranch.

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£713m