LONDON:

Ex-Beatle Paul McCartney is to pay his former wife Heather Mills £55 million ($107 million) in the highest divorce settlement Britain has ever seen, the Daily Mail reported.

The 65-year-old musician had promised his wife the money in return for her silence on their marriage, the paper said on February 9 referring to sources close to Mills and McCartney.

The two parties had also agreed to share custody of their four-year-old daughter Beatrice, it said. The little girl was to stay with Mills, while McCartney would be allowed to see his daughter any time and take her home every other weekend.

Despite the record settlement sum for Mills, the total cost of the divorce, including lawyer’s fees, amounted to only seven per cent of McCartney’s fortune, the paper said. The musician’s fortune is estimated at £825 million.

Only a few days ago, British media reported Mills had been planning to reveal embarrassing details from the couple’s marriage during next week’s court hearing if a settlement would not be reached beforehand.

The couple separated two years ago after serious disagreements.