Pop star Pauls take pole position

Sir Paul McCartney's last number one single was in 1983

More pop stars have been called Paul than any other name, a study has found.

From McCartney to Weller, people called Paul have appeared on 57 number one singles since the UK chart began in 1953, according to Yahoo! Music.

John was the second most common name for chart-toppers, with the likes of Lennon and Queen bassist Deacon appearing on 54 best-selling songs.

David was third thanks to the success of artists like Bowie, while Brian - as in May and McFadden - came fourth.

TOP 10 POP NAMES 1. Paul - 57 2. John - 54 3. David - 53 4. Brian - 43 5. George - 38 6. Mark - 37 7. Peter - 32 8. Tony - 30 9. Andy - 27 10. Shane - 24 Number of UK number one singles by acts featuring people with the above names. Source Yahoo! Music

George Harrison, George Michael and Boy George helped their name into fifth place. Mark came sixth, with 37 number ones, including tracks featuring Take That's Mark Owen and Mark Feehily of Westlife.

But despite Paul's popularity with musicians' parents, the name no longer features in the UK's top 100 boys' names.

Ventura Barba from Yahoo! Music Europe said: "When you think of rock 'n' roll names, you instantly recall the unique ones like Bono, Prince and Slash.

"It's surprising to discover that an everyday name can lay claim to such an accolade."