Sir Paul McCartney nearly drowned in a lime pit as a boy.

The 71-year-old legend's brother, Mike McGear McCartney, revealed the pair of them are lucky to be alive after they ''were clinging for their lives'' in a ditch and is glad their screams were heard by neighbours who helped to save them.

He told the Daily Mirror newspaper: ''We were screaming and clinging on for our lives. Eventually, a neighbour heard us. He pulled us out.''

Mike admits that their dad, James 'Jim' McCartney, was not pleased when he found out but since they were visibly shaken he let them off.

He added: ''We got a good hiding from our dad. It wasn't as bad as it could have been because he could see the shock.''

Meanwhile, talking on the 'Kevin & Bean' show, Paul has insisted he likes talking about his Beatles heyday since it's like looking at a ''scrapbook'' full of fond memories.

He explained: ''It's like kind of talking about your college days when you're kind of not at college anymore and there's quite a few years gone by. With the Beatles, so much what we did was incredible. And I can talk like that because it's over. It's like looking at scrapbook.

''There's so many great moments, that I actually like being reminded of them.''