2026 Impact INTL: Australia/New Zealand Honoree: Paul Dainty

Paul Dainty
Co-Founder & Managing Director
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Best Advice Received: ”There’s always drama in the entertainment business. Stay calm, don’t overreact. The sun will rise tomorrow morning. We’ll sort it out when people calm down.”

From the early ‘70s, UK-born Paul Dainty brought the A-list to Australia: the formidable list includes Paul McCartney, U2, The Rolling Stones, Michael Bublé, ABBA, Bon Jovi, Eminem, Neil Diamond, and Hugh Jackman.

For his senior role in entertainment, he was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM), adding to what was already a solid place among the all-time Australian music impresarios.

Following on from musicals, Dainty has more recently expanded into comedy and other spoken performances.

His biggest current project is “Beautiful Noise,” a musical based around the life and music of legendary singer and performer Neil Diamond, which premiered in Melbourne in August.

“Neil was one of my biggest acts, he did seven sell-out tours for me over 20 years,” Dainty says of the legendary artist, now aged 76 and who retired from touring after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2018.

Early indications are that “Beautiful Noise” will exceed the 780,000 ticket record set for “TINA – The Tina Turner Musical.”

Appropriately, other legendary artists have shaped his career and changed his life.

“The early ones (in London) like Cat Stevens and Jimi Hendrix,” Dainty says. “Probably Roy Orbison. After his UK shows, he asked me to join him for the Australian leg. I decided to stay on because of the opportunities and became a citizen in 1987.”

The biggest challenge of touring Down Under may be obvious but remains daunting.

“The tyranny of distance, and how long it takes for artists to come,” he says. “But I always argue that Los Angeles to Sydney is just three hours more than Los Angeles to London.”

While decades of experience means he’s not shaken by the typical “drama” of the entertainment business (see above), “I also make it a point to listen to global tycoons whom I’ve got to know,” he says.