Geri HalliwellGeri Halliwell will pick up a cool half a million to be the date of a billionaire playboy.     

Wealthy Dickie Lugner is splashing the cash to have the ex-Spice Girl accompany him to an opera ball in the Austrian capital Vienna.

"I'm proud to have such a star guest as Ginger Spice, who has made such a successful career for herself," said a proud Dickie.     

"I chose Geri because of her wonderful smile."     

And she'll be displaying that smile a hell of a lot with a cool £500K in her back pocket for a night's 'work'.     

Every year Lugner pays for a celebrity to accompany him. He has previously 'dated' Grace Jones, Sophia Loren, Pamela Anderson and the Duchess Of York.     

But the Sun claims even organisers want him banned because his stunts cheapen the event.     

His paid-for partners for the evening also have a duty to sign autographs at a local shopping centre.