Four celebrities are being targeted as part of HM Revenue & Customs' crackdown on offshore accounts, it has emerged.

The four – a male actor, a male TV presenter, a TV actress and a leading football manager – are all said to be household names.

They are among the 80,000-plus wealthy investors who are suspected of using offshore bank accounts to avoid paying UK tax. The inquiry has centred on bank accounts in tax havens including including Liechtenstein and Bermuda.

A Revenue source told the Sunday Mirror: 'It has recently emerged there are some high-profile figures that are coming under greater scrutiny as part of the wider tax evasion investigation.

'But the Revenue is keen to track down every single tax dodger whether they are entertainers, bankers or lawyers. The important thing is to build enough evidence to bring a successful civil or criminal prosecution.'

HMRC's crackdown on offshore accounts is facing mounting as the timetable drags on attempts to hit tax evaders hard.

The government department is still was seeking a first prosecution and is due to meet with representatives from the accountancy profession this month to seek advice on its probe.

In August Accountancy Age first revealed that HMRC's offshore investigation covered some household names. At the time, Dave Hartnett, acting chief executive of HMRC, said he hoped to begin its first offshore prosecution of an investor ‘within months'.

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