BIOGRAPHY AND PERSONALITY OF A FAMOUS GEMINI: PAUL MCCARTNEY

The judge who ruled on Heather Mills’ divorce settlement with former Beatle Paul McCartney found her a less-than-candid court witness, writing that her evidence was "inconsistent and inaccurate."

For example: Mills, known as a charity campaigner, had claimed she had given 80-90 percent of her income to charity.  But the judge said her tax returns disclose no charitable giving at all."

The full legal ruling on the divorce was released Tuesday (March 18, 2008) after a court rejected her attempt to block it.   Mills had argued it contained details of her daughter's life that could compromise her security if released.

“To some extent she is her own worst enemy,” the judge  wrote.   “She has an explosive and volatile character."

Mills was awarded a $48.6 million divorce settlement March 17.   She had asked for almost $250, but the judge said that amount was exorbitant.   McCartney had proposed $31.6 million.

The court also ordered McCartney to pay $70,000 a year in child support for the couple’s daughter Beatrice, 4.   McCartney will also pay for the child's nanny and school fees.

"I'm so, so happy with this," Mills said following the closed hearing.   "I'm so glad it's over and it was an incredible result, in the end, to secure my and my daughter's future, and that of all the charities that I obviously plan on helping."

Mills also confirmed she had dumped a glass of water on McCartney's attorney, telling reporters that Fiona Shackleton had been "baptized in court."  Shackleton emerged from the courthouse after the ruling with a wet head.  

McCartney himself made no comment as he left the courthouse, only saying “thank you” as he got into a blacked-out limousine.

McCartney married Mills, a former model turned charity campaigner, in 2002.   They announced an "amicable" split in May 2006.

The couple went to court after their split to decide on Mills’ share of his fortune, which she estimated at as much as $1.6 billion.   Judge Hugh Bennett, however, found that McCartney’s wealth was about $800 million.

James Paul McCartney was born June 18, 1942, in Liverpool, Merseyside, NW England, UK. 

The Beatles' bass guitarist, vocalist, and member of the Lennon–McCartney songwriting team, he made his debut as a soloist with the album McCartney (1970), heralding the break-up of the group.

In 1971 he formed the band Wings (disbanded in 1981) with his wife Linda (1942–98). ‘Mull of Kintyre’ (1977) became the biggest-selling UK single (2·5 million). In 1979 he was declared the most successful composer of all time: by 1978 he had written or co-written 43 songs that sold over a million copies each.

Later albums include Band on the Run (1973), Wings Over America (1977), Give My Regards To Broad Street (1984), Tripping the Live Fantastic (1990), Flaming Pie (1997), and Chaos and Creation in the Back Yard (2005), and his music attracted numerous Grammy awards. ‘Ebony and Ivory’, recorded with Stevie Wonder, was an international hit of the year in 1982.

He has performed at concerts all over the world, gaining a place in the Guinness Book of Records for playing before the largest-paid attendance (1990, Rio de Janeiro). He wrote and produced the film/video featuring ‘We All Stand Together’ (1984), which has become a perennial Christmas favourite.

His Liverpool Oratorio (written in association with Carl Davis) was performed by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra at Liverpool Cathedral in 1991, and he has since continued to develop his interests as a classical composer, notably in Standing Stones (1997). He collaborated with Harrison and Starr in the retrospective Beatles' anthology in 1995.

He wrote, produced, and composed the music for a successful animated film, Rupert and the Frog Song (1984, BAFTA). He was knighted in 1997. An exhibition of his paintings opened in Liverpool in 2002.  In 2004, he played his 3000th concert before 60 000 fans in the Russian city of St Petersburg.