Tickets were in hot demand when Victoria Beckham showed off her new clothing collection at Paris Fashion Week earlier this month. But one front-row absence was sadly and keenly felt. For many years now, the Beckham family has come out in full force to support Victoria’s rise into the ranks of the fashion world’s elite.
None has been prouder than the former Spice Girl’s eldest son Brooklyn, 26, who could always be counted on to enthusiastically wave the flag for his famous mother, together with his footballing legend dad Sir David, 50, and siblings Romeo, 23, Cruz, 20, and Harper, 14.
This year, however, the influencer and his actor wife Nicola Peltz, 30, were nowhere to be seen. The Beckhams no longer dispute that a deep rift has opened up between Brooklyn and the rest of their clan.
Rift in the family
“The Beckhams love being together and it’s sad for the whole family when Brooklyn and Nicola aren’t there,” says an insider.
“But it doesn’t look like there will be a reconciliation any time soon. David and Victoria know that. “Brooklyn has left them with no doubts that he’s not interested in engaging with them for the time being. They’re respecting his boundaries. They’ve accepted it, which has been hard, and they’re desperately worried about him. “Brooklyn always loved being around his family. He was so family-oriented, as is Nicola, but at the moment, there is a schism in the family which has kept them apart for six months now.”
Trouble behind the scenes
The last time the whole family reportedly spent time together was early in the northern hemisphere spring. By March this year, however, something went awry. Some sources dishing that Brooklyn clashed with Romeo’s now ex-girlfriend Kim Turnbull, 25.
Brooklyn and Nicola were a no-show at Victoria’s March catwalk show. Throughout March and April they also were conspicuously absent from all of David’s 50th birthday celebrations. Salt was rubbed further into the wounds in August when Brooklyn and Nicola – heiress to her billionaire father Nelson’s fortune – renewed their wedding vows in a lavish ceremony in New York.
Nicola’s family was in attendance but not only were the Beckhams not invited, they found out about it via media reports at the same time as the rest of the world. Despite her heartbreak, Victoria, 51, has continued on. Her three-part Netflix documentary, simply titled Victoria Beckham, dropped last week. Covering everything from her years as a Spice Girl to the hurdles of launching her own luxury fashion and beauty empires. It was a year in the making.
Victoria gets real
“I’ve been defined by a four-year period in my life,” she says of her decision to show her real self in the doco.
“That was the Spice Girls. It’s taken me almost two decades to fight that, and I feel that only now can I look back and talk about it. “I’m not going to lie. Being asked questions about when I was in the Spice Girls was quite triggering. Those were the most difficult moments. It was almost like therapy for me.”
Enjoying the support of her close-knit family is also self-care for Victoria. At her most recent show, David, Romeo, Cruz and Harper were all in attendance. Also present were Cruz’s Brazilian singer girlfriend Jackie Apostel, 30, Victoria’s parents, Anthony and Jackie, and other members of David’s wider family.
Brooklyn breaks his silence
Meanwhile, although Brooklyn has remained silent on the Beckham front. He was happy to talk about his happiness at a celebrity golf event last month. He shared, “There’s always going to be people saying negative things, but I have a very supportive wife. Me and her, we just do our thing. We just keep our heads down and work. And we’re happy.”
Then days after his mother’s Paris show, Brooklyn posted a cute snap of himself with Nicola on social media with the words “Date night with my girl.” Victoria herself hinted obliquely to the rift in a recent newspaper interview.
Setting boundaries
Before the candid chat, her representatives made it clear she would not answer questions about her reported fall-out with Brooklyn. At one point she raised the subject of Oasis’ reunion, which was only made possible when the Gallagher brothers buried the hatchet after 15 years of feuding.
“I just think their mum must be so happy,” she shared.
“It must have been really tough on the mum, the boys not talking for all those years… She must feel so happy to see her boys getting on.”
Until her own family rift is healed, says an insider, Victoria consoles herself with the belief that one day it will be over.
“She still hopes Brooklyn will sort things out,” says the family source.
“Of course she does.”
