[Opinión] Letters from London: Deep Purple and a few “sirs”, economic exiles because of taxes

Josep Galvez | 09/02/2021 6:47

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It seems that the decision of some “youtubers” to move to Andorra for tax reasons has caused a bitter controversy in Spain.

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Some have reproached these kids for being selfish, others asking that they be sanctioned and even the occasional late night claiming even to be punished via the Penal Code.

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The truth is that in the United Kingdom, the cradle of liberalism and Margaret Thatcher, trying to pay less taxes is a national sport which has been practiced since time immemorial.

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So it is not surprising that, Even before reaching the age of majority, the staff will find a “solicitor” or “a barrister” to help them fiscally plan their life as well as possible..

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So I think it’s worth taking a look at this old phenomenon called “Tax Exile” (fiscal exile), a music that the British have been dancing for many years and that seems to have reached Spain with force.

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AN ELEPHANT MAN WITH PASSPORT

Now that the 40th anniversary of the premiere of “The elephant Man”, that disturbing movie of David LynchIt should be remembered that the recording of this drama in Victorian times suffered serious difficulties due to the fact that sand Anthony Hopkins he couldn’t be in the UK for more than a few weeks.

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The reason? Well, as you might guess, the wonderful Welsh actor and heir to the great Richard Burton, then had his tax residence outside the country, so the stamp in his passport started the timer to record the film in England and leave in a hurry to avoid the British treasury, “Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs.”

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In fact, it seems, all Sir Anthony Hopkins sequences with that other acting genius called John Hurt, who played the very polite Josep “John” Merrick, they were recorded without the deformed character’s mask yet being finished.

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He didn’t do a bad job, did he? And above without paying taxes in the United Kingdom.

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SMOKE FOR HACIENDA

We go now to the noisy London of 1971 with the group Deep Purple, authors of authentic rock hymns such as “Highway Star“,” Black Night “or” Strange Kind of Woman “, among many other songs from decibels to gogo.

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As the story goes, this gang of long-haired people, fearing that the English treasury would take the gauntlet of the important profits for their records, decided to follow the advice of their tax advisers and stopped recording them in the UK to avoid taxation.

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Any fan of the group will now know the reason why their famous 1972 album was titled “Made in Japan” and was recorded in that country or that their most famous song “Smoke in the water”I related the fire in the studios while they were preparing an album in Switzerland.

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True. The lyrics of the song tell the true story of the events that occurred on December 4, 1971: While Deep Purple was in Montreux to record, a fire broke out that completely destroyed the mobile recording studio owned by the Rolling Stones and located in the Casino de Montreux and referred to in the lyrics of the song as “the gambling house.”

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As you can see, Thanks to the “tax exile” to avoid paying the UK treasury, Deep Purple created one of the most famous songs in history in Switzerland.

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AT THE SERVICE OF HER MAJESTY, BUT UNTRIBUTED

Those of some age will remember that in Spain we have had for years the illustrious and recently disappeared Sir Sean Connery, considered by many to be the best of the James Bond of all time for films like “Dr. No “,” Goldfinger “or” Thunderball “, among others.

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Curiously, Despite being at the service of his graceful majesty, this 007 decided to avoid paying taxes in the United Kingdom as soon as possible, placing his tax residence outside the country in the 60s, first moving to Marbella and then to the Bahamas.

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And while there is no doubt that Sir Sean Connery saved millions in taxes on the British treasury, The actor always claimed that it was only a political decision: “Like many Scots abroad, I am looking forward to going home to an independent Scotland,” he said.

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As if this were not enough, let us also remember that the famous composer John Barry, author of nothing less than 11 of the soundtracks of James Bond, also changed his residence from the United Kingdom to the United States to avoid taxes until your death in 2011.

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DO YOU HEAR THE TUBULAR BELLS?

Virgin is probably one of the best known record companies, which is due, of course, to the tremendous charisma of its founder, Sir Richard Branson and the bombshell that was the publication in 1973 of the album “Tubular Bells” by Mike Oldfield.

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Branson, a hippie educated at the very exclusive English University of Stowe, demonstrated from the beginning a great aptitude for business and as his biographer says Tom Bower: “Unlike his friends who were protesting the Vietnam War, Branson was looking for ideas that would make him money.”

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And, although Branson was not a music fan, he was a smart guy and saw that there could be enough money with a record label and the sale of records by mail, taking advantage of a recent legislative change in the United Kingdom, allowing him to create the great business group that is today Virgin.

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For its part, Mike Oldfield He is also known in the United Kingdom for leaving the country for tax reasons, having his residence fixed in the Bahamas for a few years.

In fact, it is known that, in the 70s, Mr. Oldfield’s tax advisers advised him to emigrate as soon as possible to escape taxes, which is why he has been living in Switzerland, Monaco, Ibiza or Mallorca.

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AN ENDLESS LIST OF “SIRS”

As we can see, the practice of “tax exile” is as old as the devil and, in fact, It is said that it was the Rolling Stones with sgo to Mick Jagger at the head, who started this practice in the late 60s by moving to France, where they would record the album “Exile on Main Street“, Whose title I imagine you now know what it responds to.

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This list is joined by many other “celebrities”: David Bowie (who by the way rejected in 2003 the distinction of gentleman, “sir” for the Queen isabel II from England) also moved to Switzerland in the 70s; sir Rod Stewart did the same and went to California or sand Ringo Starr, who moved to Monte Carlo in 1975.

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And I’m stopping because the list of these honorable gentlemen is endless …

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By the way, already put … Does anyone remember the reason why Julio Iglesias Have you not had a tax residence in Spain since 1978?

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