The following correction was printed in the Guardian's Corrections and clarifications column, Monday July 28 2008
If David Beckham's earnings were £50m they would not, at current exchange rates, "pale into insignificance" against Tiger Woods' income of $115m as we said below. According to Forbes Beckham's earnings are $50m. This has been corrected.
The pen may be mightier than the sword, but a magic wand is more powerful than either, or at least according to this year's Forbes' list of the world's richest celebrities. Harry Potter author JK Rowling earned more than any other celebrity, according to the annual Celebrity 100 list, taking home $300m (£150m) last year. There were other strong British performances from Keira Knightley, announced as the world's second best paid female actor, Potter actor Daniel Radcliffe and David Beckham.
Since Rowling's first story about the boy wizard arrived in bookstores in 1997, 375m copies of her books have been sold worldwide. The final instalment, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, has sold 44m since it came out last July, according to the US business magazine. The British author earned more than US talk show host Oprah Winfrey, who made $275m. However, Oprah can take at least some of the credit for helping Welsh author Ken Follett, who earned $20m after she recommended his 1989 book Pillars Of The Earth on her show last year.
Rowling is not the only one cashing in on the Potter legacy. Child star turned pinup Radcliffe, 19, came joint top of the Tweens list of young mega-earners, proving that stripping naked and disfiguring horses in the London revival of Peter Shaffer's Equus can only boost your purchasing power. He shared the top spot with Miley Cyrus, 15, (aka TV's Hannah Montana), with both stars taking home $25m last year. Radcliffe's Potter co-stars Emma Watson, 18, who plays Hermione and Rupert Grint, 19, who plays Ron Weasley, made it into the top 10, earning $5.5m and $5m respectively.
Knightley earned $32m for her role in the third swashbuckling film, At World's End, and the Oscar-nominated romance Atonement. She was beaten by Cameron Diaz, whose roles in Shrek and What Happens In Vegas helped her pocket $50m. There was a somewhat lacklustre showing in the list of highest paid male actors, however, with not a single British star making it into the top 10. I Am Legend star Will Smith topped the list with $80m.
America's favourite soccer star showed that despite cringe-worthy reality TV shows and advertising overloads, there is life yet in brand Beckham. The former England captain came second in the top 10 list of highest paid male athletes, though the $50m he made last year paled into insignificance next to the top earner, golf star Tiger Woods, who earned $115m. Needless to say, there were few British contenders for the highest paid female athlete spot. Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova claimed that title after earning $26m last year.
Rock veterans the Police were among the 27 newcomers to make the Celebrity 100 list, with earnings of $115m while Mark Burnett, the producer responsible for Survivor and The Apprentice, took home $60m.
