There was a time when Brooklyn Beckham was so close to his parents that he would even tag along with them if they took a trip to their local Waitrose.
David and Victoria, say friends, took as much pleasure in his company as he did in theirs and the bond with their first-born was described as ‘unbreakable’.
But after I revealed that Brooklyn had snubbed all five of the events laid on to celebrate his father’s 50th birthday two weeks ago, the full extent of the fall-out between the 26-year-old influencer and his mother and father can be laid bare.
On Monday, he and wife Nicola Peltz jetted into London from their home in Los Angeles for a joint photoshoot with Italian luxury fashion brand Moncler.
Despite the fact it took place less than two miles from the Beckham family home in Holland Park, west London, he didn’t even tell them about it.
Brooklyn was seen holding a bike while wearing an off-white Moncler coat from their forthcoming collection and, while Nicola was not seen on location, she did reveal on social media that she was taking part.
I can also reveal that David learned that the couple were in London – 5,000 miles from their US home – after Nicola posted on Instagram that she was getting ready for the shoot, and shortly before David met the King at the Chelsea Flower Show.
A source tells me: ‘Brooklyn didn’t even bother to let his parents know that he was going to be in London, it’s as shocking as it is upsetting for them.
Brooklyn Beckham was in London yesterday, posing for a modelling campaign with fashion company Moncler
Meanwhile, David Beckham was only half a mile up the road at the Chelsea Flower Show, chatting to King Charles and Queen Camilla
Brooklyn Beckham and Nicola Peltz attend the 2021 Met Gala. Those who know the Beckhams say they have now ‘washed their hands’ of Nicola
‘It came out of the blue when word got around that Nicola had put an Instagram post up. Then it started to get back through various friends that they were doing a shoot.
‘It is deeply upsetting for the Beckham family. All the time Brooklyn is in America, it’s a case of out of sight if not out of mind. Then he turns up in London and is just up the road working.
‘It must have been difficult for David in particular. He was all geared up to meet the King and then he got that curveball thrown into his day.’
The photoshoot was held on Pelham Crescent in the fashionable borough of South Kensington and on Cadogan Gardens in nearby Chelsea, while David was in the gardens of the Royal Hospital Chelsea – just half a mile away.
The couple later spent the night in a hotel on Park Lane, giving them ample opportunity to see David and Victoria before they flew back to California on Tuesday if they had so desired.
Those who know the Beckhams say they have now ‘washed their hands’ of Nicola, the 30-year-old heiress and daughter of US billionaire Nelson Peltz, and blame her for controlling Brooklyn and being behind his no-shows. However, they remain heartbroken at losing their treasured son. Brooklyn and Nicola claim, however, that they don’t go to events because Kim Turnbull is there.
The feud has been going on since they married in April 2022, with sources close to the family claiming Nicola will start an argument to create such an atmosphere that it becomes impossible for Brooklyn to see his parents.
But the falling out came to a head on David’s birthday when, despite travelling to London, Brooklyn and Nicola didn’t attend a big family party at the Beckhams’ Cotswolds home, an idyllic trip to France or a meal at Notting Hill restaurant Core.
Brooklyn, 26, also missed a ‘boys’ fishing trip’ to the Scottish Highlands with David and his younger brothers Romeo, 22, and Cruz, 19, as well as a pre-birthday bash at Miami restaurant Cipriani at the end of March.
Family sources tell me it didn’t go unnoticed that Romeo’s girlfriend, Kim Turnbull, was nowhere to be seen when Brooklyn and Nicola shunned David and Victoria while they were in London. Kim, a former girlfriend of Brooklyn’s friend Rocco Ritchie, has been blamed by Nicola for the family rift.
‘Kim has been made the scapegoat, she’s the supposed reason Brooklyn and Nicola weren’t at the birthday parties,’ says a friend of the family. ‘Yet when it comes to them visiting London and Kim isn’t around, they still don’t see David and Victoria.’
While there was upset in the Beckham household over the latest snub, I’m told relations between Brooklyn and his mother and father are currently in a state of disrepair. David and Victoria expect to be estranged from him for the foreseeable future. The dipsute has also affected the wider Beckham family – even Brooklyn’s once beloved grandparents.
And on Sunday, that rift was clear for all to see when the influencer failed to wish his grandad Tony, Victoria’s father, a happy birthday. However, last week he did post to mark the one year anniversary of the death of Nicola’s grandmother, Bunny.
Brooklyn (right) with his siblings and his grandfather Tony (centre) and a photo posted on Instagram by his mother Victoria
Brooklyn with David. He snubbed all five of the events laid on to celebrate his father’s 50th birthday two weeks ago
Writing alongside two pictures of himself hugging her, Brooklyn wrote on Instagram: ‘Can’t believe it’s been a year without you naunni… You were one of a kind and we miss you everyday.’
A source explains: ‘Growing up Brooklyn was so close to his grandparents. He spent a lot of time with Victoria’s parents because David was playing abroad, he and Tony had such a lovely bond.
‘Nicola has been making comments recently that the Beckhams do so much for performative reasons but you can’t get much more performative than putting a post up about your wife’s grandmother who you have known for nowhere near as long as your own, yet don’t wish your own grandfather a happy birthday either on Instagram or privately.
‘It’s heartbreaking for Brooklyn’s grandparents, but it looks like there is no end to this anytime soon.’
