THE BOYBAND RICHER THAN THE BEATLES
They only came third on X Factor. Seven years on, One Direction are worth a quarter of a BILLION. So how do they (and their very glamorous girls) splash the cash . . .
JuST seven years ago, they were schoolboys revising for their GCSEs and A-levels.
Today, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Zayn Malik, Niall Horan and Liam Payne — collectively known as One Direction — are worth a staggering £262million. That’s at least £50 million each.
This week, records filed at Companies House showed the X Factor graduates have sold ten shares in their firm 1D Media, netting them a cool £14 million each.
Terrifyingly, all are 25 or under, with all five making the Sunday Times’ under-30 Rich List last year.
To put this into context, the Beatles had each made £1.1 million at a similar point in their careers. Even taking into account inflation, this works out at a comparatively paltry £16.7 million per Beatle.
In the process, the 1D quintet have grown rather more discerning. Gone are the Primark onesies and the Citroen C3s — the modest hatchback Irishman Horan learned to drive in — and in come the designer suits and luxury convertibles.
To the companies through which they funnel their earnings — 1D Media, Rollcall Touring and PPM — the money rolls in from music royalties, merchandising, touringand seven-figure endorsement deals.
CLEMMIE MOODIE looks at how the band amassed such vast wealth — and what they have blown it on ...
not-so-modest fleet includes a £155,000 Ferrari, a £100,000 Porsche 911 Sport Classic, a £90,000 Audi R8, an £8,000 Seventies Ford Capri, a £118,00 Jaguar E Type, a £105,000 vintage Mercedes Benz and a £90,000 Range Rover Sport. THE CLOTHES: A fashion show regular, the adventurous Harry has been spotted in a £450 Alexander McQueen scarf and a £5,000 Gucci floral suit — which fans likened to a pair of curtains.
TRIVIA: A huge art fan, Styles is said to have paid £3million on a JeanMichel Basquiat painting auctioned at Christie’s in 2014. A year later he paid around £40,000 for two South African sculptures which he spotted while on tour in Cape Town. He also spent £26,500 on art by British artist Hayden Kays, whose playful pieces explore ‘love and sex’. DON’T TELL THE BANK MANAGER: Styles once bought a lampshade costing £10,000! Direction to announce his solo career, his debut single Just Hold On went straight to number one and he is expected to dominate the electro-pop charts in coming years.
After training as an actor, Tomlinson is as comfortable on screen as he is behind a mic and last year enjoyed a guest judging slot on America’s Got Talent.
THE HOUSES: The 25-year-old splashed out £6million on a fourbedroom mansion in the Hollywood Hills to be close to his one-year-old son Freddie, his child with exgirlfriend Briana Jungwirth. He also has a swanky six-bedroom North London mansion, which he bought in 2012 for £2.25 million.
THE CARS: The supercar fan previously owned a Porsche Boxster, which he sold on eBay — complete with naff personalised number plate LT11 BOX — for £30,300. He
currently drives an £85,000 grey Range Rover Sport.
THE CLOTHES: Seems to favour comfort over style — he was recently snapped in a blue £1,300 Vestments x Champions hoodie and tracksuit bottoms.
TRIVIA: Keen footballer Tomlinson had hoped to invest cash in his beloved hometown club Doncaster Rovers, but the deal fell through following a failed crowd-funding effort which was supposed to raise £2 million. He scraped together just £624,271. Three years ago, partyloving Tomlinson and Malik were filmed apparently sharing a cannabis joint. DON’T TELL THE BANK MANAGER: Tomlinson reportedly racked up a £6,000 hotel mini-bar bill after drinking the fridge dry — and ordering 14 plates of chips.