Defiant Victoria Beckham: ‘I don’t care what people think’

This time last year, nobody would’ve batted an eyelid if they saw a rich celebrity travelling between their two luxury homes.

But as we all know, we’re not living in normal times at the moment, and David and Victoria Beckham caused outrage among many last week when they were seen splitting their time between their London and Cotswolds mansions – despite the current lockdown rules in England forbidding it.

The drama started when both David and Victoria put up a video of them with their two youngest children – Cruz, 15, and nine-year-old Harper – observing the two minute’s silence on Remembrance Sunday where they were clearly at their country estate.

The following day, Posh posted a picture of her in the same jumper, which was taken by Harper, saying she was working from home, again in the Cotswolds. But she was caught out by paparazzi who photographed her outside their London house that very same morning, kissing goodbye to Harper as David drove her to school. And people were quick to comment.

“So, they’re clearly breaking lockdown – one rule for them and one rule for us,” one commentor moaned, while another wrote, “If they were in the country at the weekend, they shouldn’t be in London the next day. Naughty Beckhams.”

But Posh – who is also mum to Brooklyn, 21, and 18-year-old Romeo – didn’t seem to care and then posted another picture of her “working from home” from her Cotswolds kitchen, so had ether gone back again or was just pretending she was there. A day later, another social media post showed Harper in her school uniform by the fireplace in their London mansion. But we’re told, they’re not too bothered about how their actions are being seen.

“The Beckhams have been showing a bit of a 'we're above the rules' attitude when it comes to showcasing their life on social media,” our insider explains. “While England has gone into lockdown, they've not even tried to hide the fact they are not really changing their lifestyle of London by week and Cotswolds country property at the weekend. But Victoria is just batting away any criticism, saying she's not going to pretend to be 'holier than thou' when she knows everyone is frustrated – and thinks it's an ideal time to be doing as much as she can on social media to up her profile... to a captive audience. But the way they've been flaunting it is leading to people saying they are just tone deaf and that it could backfire on them again.”

The couple came under fire in the first national lockdown after it was revealed Victoria, 46, had taken advantage of the government’s furlough scheme for her fashion business, despite being worth a reported £336 million. She later reversed her decision after days of negative headlines and fan backlash. And then it was reported both her and David, 45, had COVID around March time, soon after holding a huge party for Brooklyn’s 21st, but didn’t say anything. Throughout the spring, however, they were keen to show they were sticking to the rules and didn’t leave the Cotswolds for over three months.

This time the Beckhams seem to be handling it differently. While last week, heat told you they were clashing over where to spend this second lockdown, it appears they've decided to have the best of both worlds.

The family seemed to be in London just as the new restrictions came into force, with their social media posts indicating they celebrated fireworks night in their Holland Park garden. And with Cruz and Harper both at school in the capital, it appears they travelled to the Cotswolds just for the weekend, even though it’s not allowed in the government's rules, unless for extreme work purposes. But with Victoria’s high end London fashion store having to close and David being unable to fly to Miami for his football team, it seems unlikely their busineses were any reason to travel to the country.

And our source reveals, “For rich people like the Beckhams, their lockdown is very different – it may mean no travel abroad, but this time around that's probably the only restriction. They still have their daily personal trainers, full house of staff such as housekeeper, driver etc – and they think it's just fine to continue as normal as possible.”

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The insider continues, "The Beckhams don't really have an appreciation for how difficult and hard this is for a lot of people. Victoria was actually getting excited as if it was like a little holiday from life, she's telling friends it means she will have so much time to plan the Christmas decor and party and this year she's going all out. She's putting all of her energy into the family Christmas and presents – they will be in the Cotswolds for it and having as many people join them as they can.”

Although it doesn’t mean Victoria is worry-free right now, as we’re told she does have concerns about her business and is anxious about the impact these latest restrictions will have. Since launching her Victoria Beckham label in 2008, she has won lots of critical acclaim for her designs and many A-list stars wear her dresses and outfits. However, last year’s records show it was operating at a £12 million loss and Posh is worried about how it will survive this pandemic.

“Her fashion business has been in trouble for the last few years, and it really took a kicking because of lockdown earlier this year,” our insider says. “And now she fears it won't survive. Her brand is too luxury for the online retail space, her customers are VIP shoppers who have personal shoppers and enjoy pampering – not getting a dress in the post. She's trying to do everything she can to save it, but she knows now it's an uphill battle."

"No one is buying anything because no one is going anywhere – she's reliant on the Middle Eastern market right now and trying to focus all her energy into the new beauty business. But that's struggling too, it's a disastrous time and looks set to stay that way for a while.”

And while all this uncertainty may not be good for her business, on a personal note she loves being able to spend more time with David.

“She loves having David around the house – and for her it's a breather from the stress of business and all the travel they both do,” we’re told. “Sure, they are both still working, but not as much – and there's no external appearances or events to juggle in the diary. For her the benefit of lockdown is this idyllic family life, cooking lovely dinners, cosy evenings at home with David, having a glass of wine and watching Netflix or chatting on the phone, waking up in her own bed every morning – with David there beside her. She is going around with a little bit of an attitude that she's on a 'retreat from life' and doesn't quite grasp that for normal people it's completely different, and there's all this worry and uncertainty over the future.”

Read more in the latest issue of heat magazine - OUT NOW.