Sunday Times Rich List 'wealthier than ever'

Gopichand Hinduja and his brother Srichand made their fortunes in industry and finance

Britain's richest people are wealthier than ever before, with a combined fortune of almost £520bn, according to the Sunday Times Rich List.

The total wealth of the richest 1,000 individuals, couples or families jumped 15% in a year, the survey said.

Wealth expert Philip Beresford, who compiled the list, said he had never before seen such a "phenomenal" rise in personal fortune.

Tycoons the Hinduja brothers were top with a joint fortune of £11.9bn.

Srichand and Gopichand Hinduja replace Arsenal FC shareholder Alisher Usmanov at the top of the annual list.

Mr Beresford said: "The richest people in Britain have had an astonishing year. While some may criticise them, many of these people are at the heart of the economy and their success brings more jobs and more wealth for the country."

The total figure for the Rich List is equivalent to a third of the UK's gross domestic product

Property and gaming

New entries include the makers of computer games.

Sam and Dan Houser, who created Grand Theft Auto, are at 947 on the list with a joint wealth of £90m.

Four of the creators of Candy Crush Saga have jumped onto the list, all with fortunes worth hundreds of millions of pounds.

Another new name on the list is former Tesco boss Sir Terry Leahy who is worth £100m and ranked 863rd.

The highest new entry is Carrie and Francois Perrodo and their family who own the London-based Perenco oil and gas operation. As a family unit, they are worth £6.14bn and come in at 14th on the rich list.

One place behind and also a first-timer on the list is German Khan, who runs the global oil and gas fund L1 Energy and is said to be worth £6.08bn.

Paul Sykes, the entrepreneur and property magnate who helped fund UKIP, is another new entry at 155, with a fortune of £650m.

Another significant debutant on the Rich List is John Roberts, creator of AO.com, the household appliance internet retailer. He is ranked 246th.

Celebrity chef

Many of the new entries further down the list have made their money with businesses that have taken advantage of the online boom in recent years. Mahmud Kamani, who is behind fashion retailer Boohoo.com, sees his family's fortune rated at £300m.

David and Victoria Beckham are now worth £210m

Jamie and Jules Oliver have been boosted by restaurant chains, TV appearances and a childrenswear range

Television's X Factor supremo Simon Cowell is now worth £300m

And Peter Cashmore, the 28-year-old who started the social media blog Mashable from a room in his parents' house near Aberdeen, is said to be worth £120m.

Alex Chesterman who co-founded online movie rental business Lovefilm and then went on to set up property website Zoopla is now worth £100m and is another newcomer to the Rich List.

Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver and his wife Jules saw their fortune leap £90m to £240m with their restaurant chains, TV appearances and her childrenswear range.

A number of other celebrities saw their fortunes continue to expand according to the Rich List. Simon Cowell is now worth £300m, David and Victoria Beckham cushioned the blow of his footballing career coming to an end and are now worth £210m, while David Bowie's return to the limelight saw his wealth expand to £135m.

The Queen, who has been on every Sunday Times Rich List since she topped the first one in 1989, is now worth £330m but that is only enough to see her ranked 285th.

More billionaires

At least £85m is needed to make it onto the list, up from the £80m in 2008, before the economic crash.

The 26th annual Sunday Times Rich List profiles the 1,000 richest individuals and families in the UK and the wealthiest 250 in Ireland.

Last week, it was revealed that the number of billionaires living in the UK had risen to more than 100 for the first time.

The Rich List said there were 104 billionaires with a combined wealth of more than £301bn.

It meant the UK had more billionaires per head of population than any other country.