David Beckham’s mum feared her son would “lose everything he worked for” when he started dating his future wife, Spice Girl Victoria Beckham.
A new four-part Netflix documentary lays bare the couple’s early relationship, with Sandra – who shares David with ex-husband Ted Beckham – telling how romance and fame changed her son, 48.
“We were worried he would lose everything he worked for because football had always come first and then all of a sudden it wasn’t,” Sandra, 74, tells the camera in a teaser for the show, which charts David’s journey from a working-class childhood to becoming one of the biggest soccer stars in the world and one half of celebrity couple Posh and Becks.
Now, an insider tells Woman’s Day Sandra’s initial reservations sparked an uneasy relationship with her now-daughter-in-law Victoria Beckham, who never fully forgave her mother-in-law for her early reservations.
Victoria Beckham reveals in the new Beckham documentary that she “stalked” David…
(Credit: Getty)“Victoria knows she wasn’t Sandra’s choice for a bride. She gets it, that David should have had a devoted sideline wife, and she was far from it. And there were times, like when David missed that penalty in 2004, that the whole world, including his family, blamed Victoria and her distractions,” a showbiz insider reveals.
“Sandra admits she feared losing David to Victoria’s showbiz ambitions, and in so many ways, she was right. She barely saw the family when they were based in LA, and even today it’s the kids who make the real effort with their grandmother.”
The Manchester United star and the Spice Girl quickly became one of the most famous couples in the world after getting engaged in 1998, before tying the knot in a lavish showbiz ceremony a year later.
“David’s working-class family were always subtly shoved into the background for family photos,” our insider spills.
David Beckham’s mum was worried his career would suffer when he met Posh.
(Credit: Getty)“There’s a reason Victoria only managed to thank her aesthetically pleasing family in her wedding album coverage [in OK! magazine].”
It’s not just Sandra who she butted heads with – she struggled with David’s sisters Lynne and Joanne, too.
“She’s had issues with Joanne, who married a reality star and clashed with David many times for constantly helping out Lynne,” says the source.
If there’s one person who understands the rift between Victoria, 49, and Sandra, it’s Posh’s new daughter-in-law, billionaire heiress Nicola Peltz, 28, who she famously clashed with when she married her eldest son Brooklyn, 24.
Are they on civil terms? Nicola sat front row with the whole family to watch Victoria Beckham’s fashion show.
(Credit: Getty)“It hasn’t helped that Nicola’s been in contact with the Beckhams, posing with Sandra like they’re besties. She’ll be seeking advice on how to manage Brooklyn and his mum, but it’s unlikely Sandra will be able to do more than offer a shoulder,” says the insider.
“Sandra has had her fair share of clashes with Victoria over the years and no doubt Victoria will be feeling out of sorts over the fact that Nicola and Sandra have formed this bond, but there’s not much she can do about it.”
Luckily, Sandra’s close bond with her grandkids is one area that the women do agree on.
“Despite their differences, Victoria is always warm and welcoming to Sandra when she’s over with the kids. As loyal as David is to her, she knows not to underestimate the bond between mother and son.”
The docuseries ‘Beckham’ is out now on Netflix.
