Forget the city of love, Paris stood as the city of reconciliation last month, when the French capital’s Fashion Week played host to what appeared to be the end of a long-running rift between Victoria Beckham and daughter-in-law Nicola Peltz. After months of feud rumours, eldest Beckham boy Brooklyn and new wife Nicola were there to support Victoria at her debut fashion show – and smiley family shots and congratulatory messages were soon shared by both sides all over Instagram.
But heat has been told that the truce is only temporary and was, in part, a case of playing nice in public. Now, the issue has turned to what is traditionally a bone of contention in every big family… Christmas.
A source reveals, “Paris helped in some ways, but in others it made things more complicated, as Nicola feels like she has now done ‘her part’ to quash the rumours and so the Beckhams owe her one. Brooklyn explained that his parents were upset – that’s why she turned up to the show. But no one believes the reconciliation will last long – especially now Nicola has refused to spend Christmas with the Beckhams for the second year in a row.”
Speculation that the mum and daughter-in-law had fallen out started when actress Nicola – who lives in Miami with Brooklyn, 23, in a house on her family’s estate – opted for a Valentino gown for her wedding day instead of a dress designed by VB. Since then, rift rumours have intensified, thanks to a lack of interaction on social media between the two sides, with all manner of seemingly passive aggressive swipes at each other.
Our insider adds, “In Paris, Nicola and Victoria greeted one another with averted eyes. They all made a fuss over Brooklyn while Nicola was the awkward elephant in the room. Brooklyn had hoped this was a turning point, and that it was just a matter of getting Nicola there for peace to be restored. Of course, it’s not that simple.”
It’s that time of year, where family WhatsApp groups are pinging with Christmas arrangements – but Nicola has no intention of spending the festive period with her in-laws.
Our source says, “In Paris, David took Brooklyn aside, telling him, ‘You have a family that loves you and that is 100 per cent here for you, no matter what.’ He and Victoria put out the Christmas invite saying, ‘Since you live with the Peltzes, it would be lovely if you came to us.’ The response was that apparently it’s traditional for the first Christmas to be spent with the bride’s family, which the David and Victoria expected, but were still sad to hear.”
A Beckhams’ Christmas is always a joyous affair, judging by the yearly influx of festive snaps, and it’s traditional for the clan – David, 47, Victoria, 48, Brooklyn, Romeo, 20, Cruz, 17, and 11-year-old Harper – to spend it at their cosy Cotswolds home. They have always been partial to matching PJs, and in 2019, Brooklyn gave followers a glimpse of The Holiday-esque set-up in the house, featuring six matching stockings above the fireplace.
Last year, Brooklyn spent the day with Nicola’s family, and while Victoria and David accept that will be the case again, they’re still reaching out to spend time with their son over the holidays.
We’re told, “They have now gone back with an invite to a pre-Christmas weekend in the Cotswolds, or a New Year’s holiday in Miami. They are not making it easy for the pair to decline. They know Brooklyn wants Nicola to be happy and finds it hard to make plans that might go against her wishes, so they’ll try to fight his corner for him.”