Prince pays off debt to promoter

MCD PROMOTER Denis Desmond has confirmed that pop star Prince has paid him all the money that he owed as a result of a High Court action.

The €2.2 million in damages, legal fees and interest was paid in full on May 18th, just five days before rival promoter John Reynolds of POD announced that Prince will play Malahide Castle in Dublin on July 30th.

Prince’s decision to finally pay up after a High Court order here, a European Enforcement Order and legal proceedings in Los Angeles, has cleared all legal avenues for him to play the concert which will have a 35,000 capacity.

“The cat has chilled. I’m very happy I got my money from Prince,” Mr Desmond said.

Mr Desmond sued Prince for cancelling a proposed concert at Croke Park on June 16th, 2008. The cancellation came 13 days before the concert took place and after 55,000 tickets had been sold.

MCD sued Prince for damages. The case went to the Commercial Court where an out-of-court settlement was agreed after a four-day hearing.

Mr Desmond pronounced himself pleased at the time and also said then that the “cat has chilled”, a reference to Prince’s advice to his agents when dealing with the MCD promoter – “tell the cat to chill”.

However, Prince reneged on the deal and MCD was granted a €2.2 million judgment which involved €1.7 million in damages and the rest in legal costs. MCD also secured a European Enforcement Order Certificate, which allowed them to pursue Prince’s assets in Europe which would have made it difficult for the singer to play anywhere in Europe.