THE ROYAL TOADIES
Palace party was the climax of decades of bending the knee by the Beckhams
FLASH, narcissistic and with pretensions to a version of ‘posh’ that goes way beyond the Spice Girls moniker, for years now the Beckhams have been hankering after a semi-royal status.
An early declaration of intent came at their 1999 wedding which was, excruciatingly, royal themed. It featured matching purple thrones, a newly created ‘heraldic’ crest and a delicate gold crown for the deeply tanned bride.
And this week it appears their vulgar social climbing has spectacularly paid off.
The ex-footballer and ex-Spice Girl may have long ago sold their Hertfordshire mansion dubbed Beckingham Palace — but for daughter Harper’s sixth birthday party they attained a private function inside the real thing.
The party, hosted last week by Prince Andrew in his private apartment at Buckingham Palace at the suggestion of his ex-wife the Duchess of York, has apparently caused fury at the Palace now it has come to light.
David Beckham posted an Instagram picture on Monday that showed Harper dressed as Princess Elsa from the film Frozen in the front quadrangle of Buckingham Palace.
It was followed by a picture of her inside the Palace posing with a group of friends and Prince Andrew’s daughter Princess Eugenie.
There were instant accusations of a cheapening of the Royal Family. A Palace insider described the documenting of the event on social media as a ‘serious breach of protocol’.
He said: ‘Prince Charles is apparently seismic with rage and this will only deepen his feud with Prince Andrew. Photos are absolutely not allowed in the Buckingham Palace quadrangle. Prince William will not be amused. Even the Cambridges don’t use Buckingham Palace for their own children’s birthday parties.’
There is a feeling that Fergie only got away with the invitation to Harper and the Beckhams because the Queen is in Scotland. THE
irony is, the birthday party may undo decades of attempts by David and Victoria to ingratiate themselves with the Royals. Perhaps this is what prompted David’s somewhat panicked second post, when he made it clear the Palace had not been opened especially for Harper but was ‘ a tea party where us and other guests were invited’. So how on earth did the party come about? Well, Fergie and Posh have been friends since 1999 and have shared connections starting with mutual pal Sir Elton John and encompassing personal trainers, hairdressers and a group of showbiz pals.
They have much in common. Among other things, both have had unsuccessful chat shows, posed nude except for jewellery and shoes for charity, and flogged their personal lives to glossy magazines, with Posh selling her wedding to OK! for £1 million and Fergie taking £1.2 million for a tell-all with Hello!
Posh and Becks were first spotted with the Royal Family back in the days when David wore a bandana and Posh was trying to make it as a solo artist. The process has continued through innumerable charity events.
David is now in the habit of talking about his ‘very normal’ friendship with Prince William in interviews to plug his sponsorships.
He and the Prince got to know each other during the UK’s unsuccessful bid to host the 2018 World Cup. David and Victoria were also guests at the Prince’s 2011 wedding.
Cynics believe David’s repeated mentions of the Queen on social media are part of ‘Project K’ — his ill-fated bid to bag a knighthood.
This failed due to HMRC sending out a red flag over his efforts to pay less tax in 2014.
Emails leaked earlier this year showed he was furious and dubbed the honours committee ‘unappreciative ****s’. Well, at least both Beckhams have an OBE. ALISON BOSHOFF charts their 20-year campaign to become showbusiness royalty...