Rich list shows 1,000 of Britain's richest are much better off
A thousand of Britain's richest people are wealthier than ever before with a combined fortune of £518.975 billion, according to this year's Sunday Times Rich List.
Amid talk of the "squeezed middle", the richest Britons now own the equivalent of a third of the nation's GDP, with their combined wealth rising 15.4% on last year's total of £449.654 billion.
A minimum of £85 million is needed to even be considered for the list this year - compared to £80 million in 2008 at the height of the pre-crash boom and £75 last year.
To get into the top 500, the rich need £190 million - double the £80 million required in 2004 and up £30 million from the £160 million cut off point for last year's list.
Philip Beresford, who has compiled the ranking since 1989, said:
Top 20 richest
1 Sri and Gopi Hinduja £11.9bn
2 Alisher Usmanov £10.65bn
3 Lakshmi Mittal and family £10.25bn
4 Len Blavatnik £10bn
5 Ernesto and Kirsty Bertarelli £9.75bn
6 John Fredriksen and family £9.25bn
7 David and Simon Reuben £9bn
8 Kirsten and Jorn Rausing £8.8bn
9 Roman Abramovich £8.52bn
10 The Duke of Westminster £8.5bn
11 Galen and George Weston and family £7.3bn
12 Charlene de Carvalho-Heineken and Michel de Carvalho £6.365bn
13 Mohamed Bin Issa Al Jaber and family £6.16bn
14 Carrie and Francois Perrodo and family £6.14bn
15 German Khan £6.08bn
16 Sir David and Sir Frederick Barclay £6bn
17 Hans Rausing and family £5.9bn
18 Nicky Oppenheimer and family £4.57bn
19 Earl Cadogan and family £4.2bn
20 Joseph Lau and family £4.030bn
Most distinguished among the old money names, the Queen had a sterling year as she added £10 million to her personal fortune and is now ranked 285 with £330 million.
Well-established Rich List millionaires such as Jamie and wife Jools Oliver saw their worth go up by £90 million to £240 million, ranking them at 396, as the celebrity chef's restaurant chain, TV appearances, cookbook sales and Jool's childrenswear range continued to pay dividends.
South African insurance tycoon Douw Steyn, the money behind the wild success of the meerkat TV advertising campaign for comparethemarket.com, saw his wealth go up by £50 million to a total of £600 million, ranked 170.
Former Tesco boss Sir Terry Leahy, who stepped down at the supermarket chain in 2011, was among the new entrants with a worth of £100 million, ranking at 863.
The digital economy also showed its growing purchasing power as four members of King Digital Entertainment, which is behind the addictive Candy Crush game, joined the list for the first time too.
American film producer Harvey Weinstein and his British former model turned designer wife Georgina Chapman also made the grade for the first time with a joint fortune of £115 million, ranked 788.
Entertainers featured heavily in the 50 Young Rich list for those aged 30 and under.
Former Harry Potter star Emma Watson, 24, is now estimated to be worth £30 million, up £3 million on last year, as she builds a career for herself as a Hollywood leading lady.
Husband and wife Marcus Mumford 27, and Carey Mulligan, 28, joined the young list for the first time with a joint fortune of £13 million from their music and films.
Last week it was announced that the list's compilers had found that the number of billionaires living in Britain has risen to more than 100 for the first time.
The 26th annual Sunday Times Rich List will be released tomorrow with profiles of the 1,000 richest individuals and families in the UK and the wealthiest 250 in Ireland.