Simon Cowell's wealth nearly doubles in year
5th March 2008
Simon Cowell's wealth has ballooned by £40m in just one year, according to a list of Britain's richest people. The X Factor and American Idol judge, 47, now sits on an estimated wealth of £100m.
Simon Cowell has risen from 944th position last year in the Sunday Times Rich List, to 700 this year, no other individual from the world of pop has risen up the ranks so much.
Simon Cowell has overtaken Robbie Williams, at number 755, has increased his wealth by £5m despite a spell in rehab and the critical mauling of his latest album, to £95m this year.
The world's richest footballer, David Beckham, 31, has an extra £25m, which takes his wealth to £112m, and is ranked at 619.
Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich's divorce settlement with wife Irina has no impact on his Rich List position. He remains at number two with an estimated £10.8bn. Sir Paul McCartney, is hoping the same.. his divorce settlement with Heather Mills is yet to be thrashed out, he is currently ranked at 102 with £725m.
Movers and Shakers
EasyJet's Stelios Haji-Ioannou, 40, is now worth £1.29bn and has moved up from 80th to 49th place closing the gap with entrepreneur Richard Branson, 56, postition 11 with £3.1bn assets.
The wealthiest man in Britain, taking first place in the list, is steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal, who has increased his fortune to more than £19bn - up from last year's £14.9bn.
The Duke of Westminster tops those born in the UK
Of the five wealthiest individuals, only one, the Duke of Westminster, was born in the UK, showing Britain is a magnet for multimillionaires and billionaires from across the globe, it also shows that fewer than 10% of Britain's richest 1,000 are women.
When the Rich List launched in 1989, 75% of names had inherited their money. Today the majority, 78%, have made it themselves.
