Stunner
05-17-2006, 05:43 PM
LONDON - Former Beatle Paul McCartney and his second wife Heather Mills have separated after four years of marriage, they confirmed in a statement on Wednesday, blaming media intrusion for the split.
McCartney, 63, and former model Mills, 38, who married in a lavish ceremony in Ireland in June 2002, said the constant attention had made "it increasingly difficult to maintain a normal relationship."
"Having tried exceptionally hard to make our relationship work given the daily pressures surrounding us, it is with sadness that we have decided to go our separate ways," the statement said.
"Our parting is amicable and both of us still care about each other very much."
In another message on his website, McCartney denied that Heather had been attracted by his multi-million pound fortune.
"It's been suggested that she married me for the money," he said. "There is not an ounce of truth in this."
"She is a very generous person who spends most of her time trying to help others in greater need than herself," he added.
The couple, who have a two-year-old daughter, Beatrice, met in 1999 at a charity event, a year after the death from breast cancer of McCartney's first wife, photographer Linda Eastman.
"We hope, for the sake of our baby daughter, that we will be given some space and time to get through this difficult period," their joint statement added.
The announcement follows weeks of speculation in British newspapers about the state of the couple's relationship.
The Daily Mirror reported on Wednesday that the split had come about because the musician could no longer cope with the couple's bitter rows.
"He and Heather were getting on so badly it became impossible for them to sleep under the same roof," the paper quoted an unidentified friend of the musician as saying.
The Mirror speculated that Mills could receive 200 million pounds ($380 million) from McCartney's fortune, estimated at 825 million pounds according to the Sunday Times newspaper's annual "Rich List."
In an interview with Vanity Fair magazine published before their marriage, Mills said she had offered to sign a pre-nuptial agreement but McCartney had turned down the offer.
McCartney's marriage to Eastman, which lasted 29 years, was said to be one of the happiest in show business and they rarely spent a night apart. He was heartbroken by her death.
His friendship with Mills, who was born the year before McCartney and Eastman's wedding, blossomed after he said she had helped him to recover from the pain of losing his first wife.
"I'm lucky to have found a good woman who is strong like Linda," McCartney said.
Media reports before the wedding said McCartney's three children from his first marriage were unsure about Mills and McCartney has admitted this had been a problem.
PRESS CRITICISM
Mills, a model turned charity campaigner who lost a leg in a motorcycle accident in 1993, said the press criticism she had received since the start of their relationship had been difficult to handle.
Her sister Fiona hit back at stories from detractors in an article published on Mills' Web site.
"Many of them were hurtful, spiteful, nasty, deeply personal and, above all, untrue; written by journalists who have never met her, haven't a shred of human kindness and whose sources' were various characters claiming to know all about Heather," she wrote.
Source: News.yahoo.com
McCartney, 63, and former model Mills, 38, who married in a lavish ceremony in Ireland in June 2002, said the constant attention had made "it increasingly difficult to maintain a normal relationship."
"Having tried exceptionally hard to make our relationship work given the daily pressures surrounding us, it is with sadness that we have decided to go our separate ways," the statement said.
"Our parting is amicable and both of us still care about each other very much."
In another message on his website, McCartney denied that Heather had been attracted by his multi-million pound fortune.
"It's been suggested that she married me for the money," he said. "There is not an ounce of truth in this."
"She is a very generous person who spends most of her time trying to help others in greater need than herself," he added.
The couple, who have a two-year-old daughter, Beatrice, met in 1999 at a charity event, a year after the death from breast cancer of McCartney's first wife, photographer Linda Eastman.
"We hope, for the sake of our baby daughter, that we will be given some space and time to get through this difficult period," their joint statement added.
The announcement follows weeks of speculation in British newspapers about the state of the couple's relationship.
The Daily Mirror reported on Wednesday that the split had come about because the musician could no longer cope with the couple's bitter rows.
"He and Heather were getting on so badly it became impossible for them to sleep under the same roof," the paper quoted an unidentified friend of the musician as saying.
The Mirror speculated that Mills could receive 200 million pounds ($380 million) from McCartney's fortune, estimated at 825 million pounds according to the Sunday Times newspaper's annual "Rich List."
In an interview with Vanity Fair magazine published before their marriage, Mills said she had offered to sign a pre-nuptial agreement but McCartney had turned down the offer.
McCartney's marriage to Eastman, which lasted 29 years, was said to be one of the happiest in show business and they rarely spent a night apart. He was heartbroken by her death.
His friendship with Mills, who was born the year before McCartney and Eastman's wedding, blossomed after he said she had helped him to recover from the pain of losing his first wife.
"I'm lucky to have found a good woman who is strong like Linda," McCartney said.
Media reports before the wedding said McCartney's three children from his first marriage were unsure about Mills and McCartney has admitted this had been a problem.
PRESS CRITICISM
Mills, a model turned charity campaigner who lost a leg in a motorcycle accident in 1993, said the press criticism she had received since the start of their relationship had been difficult to handle.
Her sister Fiona hit back at stories from detractors in an article published on Mills' Web site.
"Many of them were hurtful, spiteful, nasty, deeply personal and, above all, untrue; written by journalists who have never met her, haven't a shred of human kindness and whose sources' were various characters claiming to know all about Heather," she wrote.
Source: News.yahoo.com