Paul McCartney And Wife Nancy Shevell Struggle With Fame And Celebrity In Digital Age

Paul Mccartney Nancy Shevell

First Posted: 6/03/2012 09:38 Updated: 6/03/2012 09:47   WENN

Sir Paul McCartney is struggling to cope with fame in the digital age as he is constantly pursued by fans armed with camera phones.

The Beatles legend has spent most of his life in the spotlight, but the veteran singer - who married third wife Nancy Shevell last year - reveals the boom in modern technology makes it much harder for him to go unrecognised.

He tells Swiss newspaper Blick, "It's never been as hard as it is nowadays to be famous. And I should know what I'm talking about, because I've got decades of experience in the subject. Today everybody's got a telephone with a built-in camera. If I'm walking down the street I don't really care. It also not really a problem if I'm going into the cinema or going shopping - I don't really mind.

"I'm always polite to the people that speak to me. No need to make it complicated. I've known from an early age that for the public I am an exciting figure - and I have had time to get used to it. But even for me nowadays it sometimes gets too much.

"Sometimes I want to have a peaceful evening with my wife in a restaurant without every few seconds having to pose for a mobile phone photograph. And increasingly people just don't seem to understand that. That sometimes causes unpleasant scenes."

However, McCartney insists he will always take fame in his stride, adding: "I don't want to complain. People like these have given me an enormous amount of happiness. And for that I'm very grateful. I won't ever forget what I owe them all.

"At the end of the day I was a member of the best band in the universe and not many people can say that. So anything I moan about has to be put into perspective."

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Sir Paul McCartney is struggling to cope with fame in the digital age as he is constantly pursued by fans armed with camera phones. The Beatles legend has spent most of his life in the spotlight, b...
Sir Paul McCartney is struggling to cope with fame in the digital age as he is constantly pursued by fans armed with camera phones. The Beatles legend has spent most of his life in the spotlight, b...
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02:10 PM on 03/07/2012
i dont know what linda makes of all this marriage stuff he.s doing . yes i.m sure she wants him to be happy again . but he.s now re-married twice since her passing . i doubt this one will last anymore than the one to gold-digger mills . who still uses his name & lady title too . he.s a total idiot allowing that . she should have the title taken away as she.s no longer his wife . i just pray no child comes out of this marriage like with mills . as for the privacy bit . yes i agree to a degree . however . he needs to realise that without those snapping fans . he would.nt be where he is now or have the fame & money he now has
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M Rosin
02:51 PM on 03/06/2012
He sums up the nature of celebrity these days quite well. People go to concerts these days and instead of enjoying the experience, they spend half the show taking pictures or videos with their cell phones. He seems to have a healthy attitude about it: You can't complain if you asked to be famous but these days the in-your-face nature of the fans with camera phones would be, as George Harrison once put it, "all too much."

In fact, speaking of George, he would have HATED this cell phone culture and become more of a recluse. That's a shame. Even a celebrity should be able to enjoy a dinner out without someone interrupting to take some pointless picture that's usually blurry anyway.
02:41 PM on 03/06/2012
What an arrogant, overbearing, pompous nerd he is. I don't care a jot about him or any of his family
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gimmeanamethen
saying it like it is
03:13 PM on 03/06/2012
well i am sure he won't lose any sleep over your comment
08:40 PM on 03/06/2012
I wouldn't think for a minute he would be bothered by anyones comments, but like everyone else I have a right to my opinion