Phil Collins has revealed an apparently sensitive side to Sir Paul McCartney by suggesting the former Beatle was "upset" at his claim he behaved patronisingly towards him over a decade ago.
The singing icon recounted his interaction with Sir Paul during an interview with the Sunday Times, where he drew an unflattering image of the man he once considered his hero.
"He has this thing when he’s talking to you, where he makes you feel …[putting on a condescending Scouse accent] ‘I know this must be hard for you, because I’m a Beatle. I’m Paul McCartney and it must be very hard for you to actually be holding a conversation with me.’"
He said this meeting with Sir Paul in the early 2000s ended in him re-evaluating his idol.
“I met him when I was working at the Buckingham Palace party at the palace thing back in 2002. McCartney came up with Heather Mills and I had a first edition of The Beatles by Hunter Davies and I said, ‘Hey Paul, do you mind signing this for me?’ And he said, ‘Oh Heather, our little Phil’s a bit of a Beatles fan.’ And I thought, ‘You f***, you f***.’ Never forgot it.”
But Collins, it seems, is not finished talking about the matter. In a recent interview with Billboard, he claimed his version of the event had attracted Sir Paul’s attention, who responded in an email.
“He's been in touch about it because he was upset. I certainly didn't get any flowers from him; I got more of a 'Let's just get on with our lives.' And I'm sorry he's upset that I kinda said something nasty about him - well, it wasn't really nasty. If people don't tell people that sometimes their attitude could be a bit better then you're not gonna get any better, y’know?”
Sir Paul’s representatives did not respond to a request for comment.
