Sir Ian McKellen has proved that money cannot buy you everything.

The veteran actor claims he turned down a lucrative offer to officiate a wedding dressed as his beloved Lord of the Rings character Gandalf because "Gandolf doesn't do weddings".

“I was offered one-and-a-half million dollars to marry a very famous couple in California, which I would perhaps have considered doing but I had to go dressed as Gandalf,” he told the Mail on Sunday. “So I said, ‘I am sorry, Gandalf doesn’t do weddings’.”

Sir Ian said he knew the man behind the offer was a “very rich man” but was unsure of his identity as he was never approached directly.

Ian McKellen on stage and screen Show all 10 1 /10 Ian McKellen on stage and screen Ian McKellen on stage and screen Ian McKellen on screen Ian McKellen plays Gandalf in 'The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug' AP/Warner Bros Ian McKellen on stage and screen Ian McKellen on stage and screen Ian McKellen playing Richard III (1995) Alamy Ian McKellen on stage and screen Ian McKellen on screen Ian McKellen, left, with Derek Jacobi, ham it up in the strangely un-British Vicious ITV sitcom Brown Eyed Boy ITV/Brown-Eyed Boy Ian McKellen on stage and screen Ian McKellen on stage Ian McKellen in Waiting For Godot by Samuel Beckett Geraint Lewis Ian McKellen on stage and screen Ian McKellen on stage Actors Ian McKellen and James Laurenson playing a love scene between Edward II and Gaveston during a dress rehearsal of Marlowe's 'Edward II' at London's Piccadilly Theatre (1970) Getty Images Ian McKellen on stage and screen Ian McKellen on stage Ian McKellen in Aladdin AP Ian McKellen on stage and screen Ian McKellen on screen Sir Ian McKellen as a nonagenarian Sherlock Holmes in the upcoming film Mr Holmes AP Ian McKellen on stage and screen Ian McKellen on screen Ian McKellen in X-Men: The Stand AP Ian McKellen on stage and screen Ian McKellen on stage Ian McKellen in 'King Lear' in 2007 RSC Ian McKellen on stage and screen Ian McKellen on screen Ian McKellen as Gandalf in the Hobbit AP/Warner Bros

The paper claims the “very rich man” was Silicon Valley’s Sean Parker who has an estimated net worth of $2.4 billion. Parker, who was depicted by Justin Timberlake in the 2010 film The Social Network, co-founded the music streaming service Napster, later joined Facebook as its founding president and currently sits on the board of Spotify. He married his singer/songwriter wife Alexandra Lenas in 2013.

Sean Parker and Alexandra Lenas before they married in 2013 (Getty)

The couple married at a ceremony in the sunshine state which was rumoured to cost $10million (approximately £7.5 million). The Lord of the Rings costume designer was hired by the couple and guests – which included actresses Emma Watson and Olivia Munn and the founder of Twitter Jack Dorsey – were given Tolkien costumes to wear throughout the nuptials.

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While the suggestion of Gandalf officiating the ceremony may have been outlandish, the same cannot be said for the idea of Sir Ian stepping up to the role. The 77-year-old previously married his good friend Sir Patrick Stewart and his singer wife Sunny Ozell in 2013 and before that a same-sex male couple.