Ex-Beatle Paul McCartney and his second wife, Heather Mills McCartney, are separating after almost four years of marriage.

The two are blaming media intrusion for the split but insist the decision is amicable, according to a statement McCartney released on his web site.

Rumours have been circulated that the 38-year-old Mills McCartney wanted to devote more time to activism against land mines and fur.

She married McCartney, 63, in June 2002, four years after his previous wife, Linda McCartney, died of breast cancer. They had a daughter, Beatrice, in October 2003.

?Separation for any couple is difficult enough, but to have to go through this so publicly, especially with a small daughter, is immensely stressful,? said a statement from the couple. ?We hope, for the sake of our baby daughter, that we will be given some space and time to get through this difficult period.?






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