Spin it like Beckham
IN fairness, it was never going to be easy for David Beckham to repair his shredded public image. But in giving it his best shot, he offered an extraordinary excuse, insisting through friends that he was a ‘normal person’ who was just ‘extremely disappointed’ at being passed over for a knighthood.
The former England captain, 41, was referring to the release of damning emails which allegedly showed how desperate he was to ensure he was made ‘Sir David’ – and the lengths to which he would go to achieve his goal, even using his charity work.
When his campaign failed, he allegedly lashed out with an expletive-littered outburst worthy of the most petulant of divas.
Ironically, one target of his wrath was a real diva – Welsh mezzosoprano Katherine Jenkins, who was awarded an OBE in the same year that the footballer’s much-anticipated gong was unforthcoming.
In an email to his friend and PR adviser Simon Oliveira, Beckham allegedly wrote: ‘Katherine Jenkins OBE for what? Singing at the rugby and going to see the troops plus admitting to taking coke? F ****** joke.’
Jenkins, 36, had previously admitted in an interview with the Mail on Sunday that her life was almost ruined by cocaine and ecstasy.
Beckham’s outburst would no doubt have come as an unpleasant surprise to the classical star, who had previously been forced to deny unfounded rumours of an affair with him. Yesterday she declined to comment.
Meanwhile, a source close to the former Manchester United star told the Mail on Sunday that his foul-mouthed rant was written ‘in the heat of the moment’.
The source said: ‘David is just like any normal person and he was extremely disappointed that he wasn’t deemed worthy of becoming a Sir. He is a passionate man. He gets very passionate about his work and particularly about his country, Great Britain. That’s what drives him.
‘He spent a lot of time and effort getting the London Olympics to the UK, which had such a positive effect on so many people, but for it not to be acknowledged made him very emotional. Who wouldn’t be?’
The series of emails was released by Football Leaks, the sporting equivalent of WikiLeaks, via European media. They were dismissed by a Beckham spokesman who said they had been ‘hacked and doctored’.
The cache includes allegations that Beckham, a Unicef ambassador, demanded £6,685 from the charity for a business-class flight for him to attend an event in Asia. He never took the flight because his sponsors had provided a private jet.
Football Leaks claimed the emails suggested Beckham used his charity work as part of a conscious effort to win an honour – which he denies.
Beckham reacted angrily when Oliveira suggested that he should put $1m into a prize-giving Unicef dinner in Shanghai, Football Leaks claimed.
The footballer, who has an estimated net worth of €325m, allegedly replied: ‘I don’t want to put my personal money into this cause… If there was no fund, the money would be for me. This f ****** money is mine.’ French investigative site Mediapart, which published the Football Leaks material, alleged that Beckham wanted to use his personal fund, named ‘7’ after his shirt number at Manchester United, to promote his business activities.
‘Not to be acknowledged left him very emotional’
I’m just a normal person who is extremely disappointed not to get a knighthood STAR’S JAW-DROPPING EXCUSE FOR HIS LEAKED C-WORD RANTS
‘Humanitarian causes were just a stepping stone for his personal affairs and to project his image among advertisers,’ claimed a source close to the leaks.
Beckham, who erceived an OBE in 2003, allegedly ranted at members of the Honours Committee in an email after missing out on a knighthood in 2013, calling them a ‘bunch of c **** ’. He added: ‘Who decides the honours? It’s a disgrace.’
By 2013 Beckham’s playing career was over and he expected a fitting honour. That November, one newspaper even published a front-page story under the headline ‘Arise, Sir David,’ suggesting it was a certainty.
Ahead of Beckham’s appearance on the Jonathan Ross Show, Oliveira allegedly wrote in an email to the programme’s producers: ‘Maybe Jonathan should ask about the knighthood and say he should get it. What do you think? David is up for it.’
Beckham learned a few weeks after the show that his bid had failed.
The following year, Oliveira urged him to intervene in the Scottish independence debate because ‘clearly the right thing is that we stay together due to our history and because we are stronger’. He advised Beckham: ‘I also think your support will play well with establishment and in turn help your knighthood.’ He said: ‘Okay let’s do it.’
A spokesman for Beckham said: ‘This story is based on outdated material and taken out of context from hacked and doctored private emails from a third-party server and gives a deliberately inaccurate picture.’
Unicef said last night: ‘David has given significant funds personally.’