Ex-Busted duo lose £10m battle

Ki McPhail and Owen Doyle say they wrote songs with James Bourne and Matt Willis - including the massive hits Year 3000 and What I Go To School For - when the group formed in 2001.

They claimed at a hearing in February that they were forced to sign away their rights after "threats" and "undue pressure" when they were sacked from the band later that year.

But Mr Justice Morgan dismissed all their claims and criticised the evidence they gave in court.

Of McPhail, the judge said: "If he did believe the evidence he gave to the court, it can only be because he has indulged in very extensive self-serving reconstruction in the period between the relevant events and the time of the trial and has now convinced himself that his reconstructed version of events really happened."

And of Doyle, the judge said he "was not a reliable witness either. He manifested a high degree of confusion and a failure to grasp the detail in relation to many of the significant events".

McPhail and Doyle were in a band called The Termites with Bourne and Willis between January and October 2001.

They said they also wrote the songs Sleeping With The Light On and Psycho Girl together during their time with Busted, who had eight top 10 hits between 2002 and 2004 before splitting up a year later.

Andrew Forbes, of the solicitors who represented Busted, said Bourne and Willis "have emerged victorious".

In a statement, the Busted pair said: "This was an opportunistic attempt by Doyle and McPhail to cash in on our success. Their claims were a complete fabrication and we are delighted that the judge has seen through this and totally dismissed them. Our position has been completely vindicated and our achievements with Busted remain untarnished."