Phil Collins and Paul McCartney End 24-Year Feud
The legendary musicians have reconciled after a decades-long disagreement that began at a 2002 royal event.
Phil Collins has revealed that his 24-year feud with Paul McCartney has come to an end. In a recent interview on "Piers Morgan Uncensored," Collins shared that the two music icons recently spoke by phone and have since reconciled.
The disagreement originated in 2002 during rehearsals for the Queen's Jubilee Concert at Buckingham Palace. Collins recounted that he presented McCartney with a rare first edition of Hunter Davies' book on The Beatles and asked for an autograph. According to Collins, McCartney then remarked to his then-wife, Heather Mills, "He's a big Beatles fan, is our little Phil?"
Collins, who was 75 at the time of the interview, stated that he felt McCartney's comment was condescending, recalling, "I thought, ‘You arsehole.’ I couldn’t help it. That’s just what I thought. I probably made more of it than he meant; I did make more of it."
However, in a recent conversation facilitated by Collins organizing a charity auction for the King's Trust, McCartney reached out. Hearing that Collins was soliciting memorabilia donations, McCartney called him. During their discussion, McCartney brought up their past estrangement, asking Collins, "What is all this about?"
Collins expressed his regret, saying, "I said, ‘I wish I’d never said it, Paul. I wish I’d never said it.'" He added that McCartney responded, "I thought we were good." The "You'll Be in My Heart" singer concluded that they "kissed and made up," though he also commented that McCartney may value being liked more than others.
In a 2016 interview with The Sunday Times, while promoting his memoir "Not Dead Yet," Collins had described McCartney as having treated him "condescendingly." He recalled McCartney emailing him after reading the memoir, stating, "I’m a bit disappointed, blah blah." Collins noted that McCartney used the word "sacrosanct," which he did not fully understand but felt left a negative impression.
Despite the long-standing tension, Collins expressed happiness that their reconciliation had come full circle, emphasizing that McCartney is "part of [his] life."