Paul McCartney, fiancée to marry "soon"

Paul McCartney's fiancée Nancy Shevell has claimed that the couple plan to tie the knot "soon".

Last week, the former Beatle became engaged to his longtime girlfriend after dating for four years.

Shevell has now revealed that McCartney's "surprise" proposal came during a trip to California, when the musician gave his future spouse a "vintage 1925 Cartier engagement solitaire diamond from Tate Galleries".

The wedding will take place in the immediate future, but Shevell insisted that there will be little fanfare as she and McCartney are planning a courthouse venue.

"[It will be] just our families," New York Post's columnist Cindy Adams quotes her as saying. "I don't know the exact date. And don't ask what I'll wear because how dressy do you get to stand before a Justice of the Peace in his chambers, which is exactly what we're going to do."

McCartney has been married twice before, first to photographer and Wings bandmate Linda for nearly 30 years.

Following Linda's death from cancer in 1998, the singer married model Heather Mills. Their relationship officially ended in 2008 following protracted divorce proceedings.

> Gallery: Paul McCartney's love life