JustJodi
17-05-2006, 14:31
Paul McCartney and his second wife, Heather Mills McCartney, said
Wednesday they are separating after nearly four years of marriage,
citing pressures from the media and insisting their split is
amicable.
"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," a statement from the couple
said. "Our parting is amicable and both of us still care about each
other very much."
McCartney, 63, and Mills, 38, married in June 2002, four years after
his former wife, Linda McCartney, died of breast cancer. McCartney
and Mills had a daughter, Beatrice, in October 2003.
"Separation for any couple is difficult enough, but to have to go
through this so publicly, especially with a small daughter, is
immensely stressful," it added. "We hope, for the sake of our baby
daughter, that we will be given some space and time to get through
this difficult period."
McCartney's wealth was estimated at $1.5 billion by the Sunday Times
in their annual list of Britain's richest people. The couple are
believed not to have a prenuptial agreement.
In 2002, Heather Mills told Vanity Fair that McCartney didn't force
her to sign a prenuptial agreement before their huge wedding —
despite tabloid reports to the contrary.
Mills said she offered to sign an agreement, but that McCartney —
who was worth more than $1 billion at the time — wouldn't allow it.
"I wanted to prove that I love him for him," she was quoted by the
magazine as saying. "He said, 'I wouldn't let you.'"
McCartney told the magazine that he knew some people would think he
was being suckered by a gold digger.
"I"m not stupid," he told Vanity Fair. "Heather's a really nice
person, or else I wouldn't be attracted in the least. She's great.
But you're going to find people who are going to knock her, because
the better story is the negative one."
Mills McCartney has been accused of meddling in her husband's
career — such as the dismissal of his longtime publicist Geoff
Baker — and even of influencing him on issues as diverse as dying
his hair and plastic surgery.
In a statement on her personal Web site, Mills McCartney posted a
note from McCartney blasting the press and denying the rumors.
"Although some of these articles can be funny, there are others that
are plain malicious and you need to be strong not to be hurt by some
of the cruel suggestions that flow from these peoples pens," the
statement said.
Rumors of a rift between Mills-McCartney and the former Beatles'
children — especially Stella McCartney — have circulated for years.
The note on the Web site denied the gossip.
"The media sometimes suggests a rift between my kids and Heather,
but in fact we get on great and anyone who knows our family can see
this for themselves," McCartney wrote.
Mills is a former model and a vociferous animal rights campaigner
who recently traveled with McCartney to eastern Canada to fight that
country's seal hunt. The couple met in 1999 through Mills' charity,
the Heather Mills Health Trust. She launched the trust after losing
a leg in a motorcycle accident in 1993.
McCartney already has three children from his marriage to Linda, who
died in 1998 — musician James, photographer Mary, and fashion
designer Stella. He also has a stepdaughter, Heather, from Linda
McCartney's first marriage.
Wednesday they are separating after nearly four years of marriage,
citing pressures from the media and insisting their split is
amicable.
"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," a statement from the couple
said. "Our parting is amicable and both of us still care about each
other very much."
McCartney, 63, and Mills, 38, married in June 2002, four years after
his former wife, Linda McCartney, died of breast cancer. McCartney
and Mills had a daughter, Beatrice, in October 2003.
"Separation for any couple is difficult enough, but to have to go
through this so publicly, especially with a small daughter, is
immensely stressful," it added. "We hope, for the sake of our baby
daughter, that we will be given some space and time to get through
this difficult period."
McCartney's wealth was estimated at $1.5 billion by the Sunday Times
in their annual list of Britain's richest people. The couple are
believed not to have a prenuptial agreement.
In 2002, Heather Mills told Vanity Fair that McCartney didn't force
her to sign a prenuptial agreement before their huge wedding —
despite tabloid reports to the contrary.
Mills said she offered to sign an agreement, but that McCartney —
who was worth more than $1 billion at the time — wouldn't allow it.
"I wanted to prove that I love him for him," she was quoted by the
magazine as saying. "He said, 'I wouldn't let you.'"
McCartney told the magazine that he knew some people would think he
was being suckered by a gold digger.
"I"m not stupid," he told Vanity Fair. "Heather's a really nice
person, or else I wouldn't be attracted in the least. She's great.
But you're going to find people who are going to knock her, because
the better story is the negative one."
Mills McCartney has been accused of meddling in her husband's
career — such as the dismissal of his longtime publicist Geoff
Baker — and even of influencing him on issues as diverse as dying
his hair and plastic surgery.
In a statement on her personal Web site, Mills McCartney posted a
note from McCartney blasting the press and denying the rumors.
"Although some of these articles can be funny, there are others that
are plain malicious and you need to be strong not to be hurt by some
of the cruel suggestions that flow from these peoples pens," the
statement said.
Rumors of a rift between Mills-McCartney and the former Beatles'
children — especially Stella McCartney — have circulated for years.
The note on the Web site denied the gossip.
"The media sometimes suggests a rift between my kids and Heather,
but in fact we get on great and anyone who knows our family can see
this for themselves," McCartney wrote.
Mills is a former model and a vociferous animal rights campaigner
who recently traveled with McCartney to eastern Canada to fight that
country's seal hunt. The couple met in 1999 through Mills' charity,
the Heather Mills Health Trust. She launched the trust after losing
a leg in a motorcycle accident in 1993.
McCartney already has three children from his marriage to Linda, who
died in 1998 — musician James, photographer Mary, and fashion
designer Stella. He also has a stepdaughter, Heather, from Linda
McCartney's first marriage.