Sir Paul McCartney has stopped signing autographs.
The Beatles legend doesn’t see the point in fans having his signature because “we both know who I am”.
He told Reader’s Digest: “It always struck me as a bit strange – ‘here, can I write your name down on the back of this till receipt please?’ Why? We both know who I am.”
The ‘Let it Be’ hitmaker also doesn’t understand why anyone would want a poor-quality selfie with the 79-year-old icon and insisted he would rather have a nice chat with his fans.
He added: “What you’ve usually got is a ropey photo with a poor backdrop and me looking a bit miserable. Let’s chat, let’s exchange stories.”
Back in 2008, Macca’s bandmate, Sir Ringo Starr, 81, announced he would not be signing any more autographs or accepting fan mail, as more often than not the signed items are sold on.
In a video message to fans, the legendary drummer said at the time: “Serious message to everybody watching my update right now peace and love, peace and love. I want to tell you, please. After the 20th of October, do not send fan mail to any address that you have, nothing will be signed after the 20th of October, if that has a date on the envelope, it’s going to be tossed. I’m warning you with peace and love I have too much to do. So no more fan mail, thank you, thank you, and no objects to be signed, Nothing.
Anyway, peace, love, peace, of love.”
Meanwhile, McCartney recently denied he was the band member who “instigated” the iconic Liverpool group’s split in 1970 and insisted it was the late John Lennon – who was tragically murdered aged 40 in 1980 – who was behind their decision to call it a day.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s new series ‘This Cultural Life’, he said: “I didn’t instigate the split. That was our Johnny.
“This was my band, this was my job, this was my life, so I wanted it to continue.”
On the speculation that was rife at the time that their demise was his doing, the music legend insisted: “I had to live with that because that was what people saw. All I could do is say, ‘no’.”
“I am not the person who instigated the split.
“Oh no, no, no. John walked into a room one day and said I am leaving the Beatles. Is that instigating the split, or not?”
Lennon had told the rest of the band that he wanted to leave the group.
And McCartney suggested the other members – also including the late George Harrison, who died aged 58 in 2001 – had all reached the same point in their lives when it was time to move on, even if they didn’t realise it at the time.