Paul McCartney has been one of the UK’s wealthiest musicians for the last 60 years due to his Beatles royalties. Now he has reportedly become the first UK musician to become a billionaire ($1.27bn).
The Sunday Times Rich List, published annually, reports that Sir Paul has seen his immense fortune increase by £50m ($63.5m) in the past year – thanks to Beyonce’s cover of his 1968 song Blackbird, the ever-lucrative value of the Beatles catalogue, plus his own continued touring into his 82nd year.
The Fab Four Beatles all made fortunes with their record-breaking record sales in the 1960s, but it was the songwriting partnership of McCartney and John Lennon who earned the really big money on royalties. McCartney added to this with his subsequent band Wings, writing the James Bond theme Live and Let Die, as well as his solo career.
The BBC reports that other entertainment figures on this year’s Rich List include Sir Elton John, musical impresario Andrew Lloyd-Webber and David and Victoria Beckham. Drive to Survive star and former Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton is also a first-time addition to the list.
The richest family in the UK is that of Gopi Hinduja, with a fortune calculated at £37.3bn ($47.4bn), the highest ever listed by The Sunday Times. The paper’s research reveals the family’s business interests spread across 48 countries and almost a dozen sectors, including automotive, oil and speciality chemicals, banking, finance and cyber security.
