This November marks 49 years since the release of Paul and Wings’ record-breaking single, ‘Mull of Kintyre’. Co-written with Denny Laine, the song became the first single in UK history to sell more than two million copies and remains one of the biggest-selling non-charity singles of all time.

While the song is deeply connected to the rugged landscape that inspired it, Kintyre was much more than the setting for a hit record. For Paul, it was a family home, a place to escape the pressures of fame, and the backdrop to countless treasured memories.

So, when fan Leo Butler asked Paul about his happiest recollection from living there with Linda and the children, his answer was immediate: bonfires.

Leo asks: What’s your best memory of when you were living in Scotland and visiting the Mull of Kintyre with your family?

Paul: Bonfires, probably. Just because the sky up in Scotland, that far north, is very big. And if you’re on a farm, there’s no buildings within eyesight. So, we would sometimes build a big bonfire and then lie out on blankets just looking up at the stars. I have some really nice memories with the kids growing up. There was a shooting star that we saw. But, to answer the question, I think just building a nice bonfire. I like building a nice bonfire.

PaulMcCartney.com: There’s something very special about that. Did you only do it in the summer, or was it a winter thing too?

Paul: That’s a good question. I think it’s mainly the summer. Well, actually… Bonfire Night is 5th November. We would do it then as well.

PaulMcCartney.com: You made a big bonfire at the end of the ‘Mull of Kintyre’ video. There’s a big bonfire scene and you had a big singalong.

Paul: Yeah!

PaulMcCartney.com: Did your love of bonfires inspire that ending?

Paul: Yeah, I think that was because we did the bonfires. I talked to the people making the film and sometimes it just inspires them. They go, ‘Yeah, we can have that.’ And that night we shot around a bonfire. So, it was nice ending for that video!

It’s a small detail, but one that helps explain why the ‘Mull of Kintyre’ music video feels so authentic and communal. Rather than being a staged idea dreamt up for a music video, the bonfire scene grew out of a genuine family experience, capturing a real part of life on the farm.

Images: paulmccartney.com

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