How much did you earn last year?<\/p>\n
I don\u2019t earn much these days, just a bit of pocket money to keep me going. Luckily I have my private pensions, which I paid into for many years. I also own a flat in Manchester, which I rent out. Recently I published my autobiography David Hamilton\u2019s Long and Winding Road, and that has sold well so that\u2019s bringing in a bit more money, which is very handy.<\/p>\n
The peak of my career was in the mid-Seventies, when I was on Radio 1 and Radio 2 at the same time and doing TV shows such as Top of the Pops, but I never earned all that much. The BBC was very careful with its money in those days. When I hosted Top of the Pops, which was watched by 15 million people, I was paid \u00a375, then straight after I went to do a disco in the Old Kent Road in front of about 200 people where I was paid \u00a3300. Even further back, I introduced the Beatles in concert in 1963 and my fee was ten guineas. The following year I introduced the Rolling Stones at the Palace Theatre in Manchester and my fee went up to 12 guineas. The money was a pittance, but these were the biggest bands in the world so I was happy to do it for the craic and just to work with those great names. Working with Ken Dodd also proved to be quite fruitful; he\u2019s the one who coined my nickname Diddy, because I\u2019m only 5ft 6in tall. I was happy to embrace the name, and it stuck and I\u2019ve made the most of it. It\u2019s an affectionate nickname and people know me for it. <\/p>\n
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Hamilton was a match day MC at Fulham football club<\/p>\n
ALAMY<\/p>\n
The best year I had financially was in 2000 when I worked for Saga Radio, and one of the most lucrative regular gigs I had was as the match day MC at Fulham football club for Mohamed Al Fayed, before anyone knew what he\u2019d been up to. I\u2019d do the half-time entertainment and announce the scorers from the dugout. I kept telling Al Fayed I was going to retire but he kept offering me more money, so in the end he was paying me a grand a game and I also had the privilege of listening to his industrial language. I used to introduce him to the crowd before the match, and he would come out with his black and white scarf, waving to the crowd. He would always come over to me for a chat, and I would say to him, \u201cWe\u2019ve got to win today, boss.\u201d And he would say to me, \u201cIf we don\u2019t win today\u2026\u201d and he\u2019d tell me what he would do to the team, and I had to hold the microphone behind my back so that these words were not broadcast to the whole crowd.<\/p>\n
Have you ever been really hard up?<\/p>\n
I went through a divorce in the Seventies which cleaned me out, and I said goodbye to everything I had earned over 20 years. I gave my wife the house and I paid my children\u2019s school fees. There\u2019s no better way of saying goodbye to money than divorce. I went from a detached house to a small flat and it took me a long time to get back on my feet. I didn\u2019t get to the point where I had to turn the heating off or miss meals, I just worked harder. I did more gigs, more travel and eventually got myself back, but it took a long time.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Fame and Fortune: Kate Lawler<\/a><\/p>\n Do you own a property?<\/p>\n I live in a 500-year-old farmhouse in Sussex \u2014 it\u2019s on the farm where I was evacuated during the war, which was run by my grandfather. Moving out of London is the best thing I\u2019ve ever done. It wouldn\u2019t have suited me here when I was younger, but I love the countryside and I love the peace and quiet. I do my radio show from home every day, so all I have to do is walk upstairs, no travel required. I have the rental property in Manchester, and I did have a holiday home in Turkey which I used to rent out during the summer, but then somebody made me an offer I couldn\u2019t refuse, so I sold it. <\/p>\n Are you better off than your parents?<\/p>\n Without doubt. My father, who died at 58, was a journalist and he died penniless. I paid for his funeral. After my parents divorced, my mother got a job as a manageress with Richard Shops. She lived quite frugally and when she died at 57, she left me \u00a35,000, which is the only money that I\u2019ve ever been given in my life, so I respected it. She worked hard for it and I made sure that it wasn\u2019t wasted.<\/p>\n Do you invest in shares?<\/p>\n I have invested in shares in the past. I got a very good tip some years ago about Border Television, which was eventually sold, and I did very well with that. But I haven\u2019t invested in recent times. <\/p>\n The DJ does his Boom Radio show from the Sussex home he shares with his wife, Dreena<\/p>\n ARTHUR EDWARDS \/ THE SUN<\/p>\n What\u2019s better for retirement \u2014 property or pension?<\/p>\n I keep working because I love my work. I think you only retire from a job that you find boring. But property has always been the best investment, although it\u2019s important to have a private pension as well, because the state pension is so measly.<\/p>\n What\u2019s been your best investment?<\/p>\n I bought a house in Barnes in southwest London for \u00a3200,000 in about 1981, lived there for 25 years and eventually sold it for \u00a32 million, which in anyone\u2019s eyes is a pretty good investment.<\/p>\n \u2022 Fame and Fortune: Geoff Norcott<\/a><\/p>\n And the worst?<\/p>\n This is a mistake I avoided rather than made, but somebody once wanted me to invest in a 24-hour takeaway video business in Fulham. My bank manager advised me against and thank goodness he did, because the business went bust soon after. It\u2019s always best to stick to what you know.<\/p>\n What\u2019s the most extravagant thing you\u2019ve bought? Hamilton with his Diddy number plate in 1991 and 2000<\/p>\n NEWS GROUP NEWSPAPERS LTD \/ COLIN DAVEY\/GETTY IMAGES<\/p>\n I once spent \u00a35,000 on a \u201cD1DDY\u201d personalised number plate for a Mini Cooper I had, but it\u2019s not on a car at the moment. I would sell it, but it\u2019s not a good time because I keep reading about that Diddy guy in America who is up in front of the beak \u2014 he has sullied my name. I\u2019ve always indulged in cars. I\u2019ve had Rolls-Royces, Bentleys, Mercs, BMWs and now a Range Rover, which is perfect for the country. In the Seventies I used to live in a pokey flat in Fulham with a Rolls outside, so it was very much fur coat but no knickers. I gave up on it eventually because it was vandalised so much. I had five Spirit of Ecstasy emblems nicked and someone once even sprayed a swastika on it. People were very jealous.<\/p>\n What\u2019s your money weakness?<\/p>\n I\u2019ve got nine grandchildren so you can imagine how much I look forward to Christmas.<\/p>\n What is your financial priority?<\/p>\n I\u2019ve always worried about money because of the precariousness of my work. More than 20 radio and television stations I\u2019ve worked for have closed down. I hope I\u2019m not a jinx. I\u2019m financially secure now, so my main priority is maintaining my health.<\/p>\n![\"DJ](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/\/37a851ce-0ba2-42ea-b75d-037e7572dc7f.jpg\")
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