I interviewed Brooklyn Beckham - and his down-to-earth responses about 'best friend' Nicola Peltz surprised me
In 2021, Brooklyn Beckham joined HELLO! for an exclusive interview, where he discussed his wedding plans with his then-fiancée and "best friend," Nicola Peltz
Flashback to a grey autumn day in London, and I was on my way to interview Brooklyn Beckham at Superdry's Oxford Street store. At the time – 2021 to be exact – a happily engaged Brooklyn had been appointed the brand's first sustainability ambassador, and the notion of a 'Beckham family feud' was unthinkable. When I met Brooklyn, who was then 22, I was struck by how kind and courteous he was in our interview, listening intently to my questions, and treating our meeting as more of a friendly chat than a promotional opportunity.
Brooklyn joined HELLO! for an exclusive chat in 2021
It had been over a year since he'd proposed to his fiancée, model and actress Nicola Peltz, and his face lit up every time we spoke of her. "I'm marrying my best friend so we kind of have our own little bubble together now, and it's just really nice," he said, beaming from ear to ear. There was no sign of foreshadowing in his innocently made comment. This was simply a man who appeared deeply in love.
Like the rest of the world, the couple had been forced to put their wedding plans on hold due to the pandemic, but with the coronavirus crisis gradually easing off, they'd begun the process of planning their nuptials. "If Covid wasn't a thing, we'd have liked to have been married already, and it has been a bit difficult," Brooklyn admitted.
Brooklyn described Nicola Peltz as his "best friend"
Already based in the US, Brooklyn had moved across the pond, isolating with Nicola in New York, before taking up residence in Beverly Hills. Asked if he and Nicola would fly back to London for Christmas that year, Brooklyn told HELLO!: "I am so busy with work right now, so it's kind of wherever work takes me. I think I'm going to be with my fiancée's family, so I'm very excited."
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I had absolutely no doubt that Brooklyn was head-over-heels for Nicola, and during our interview, he also spoke with a lot of love and respect about his parents, Victoria and David Beckham. As we reflected on his biggest fashion influences, the budding chef said: "I have a few, obviously my mum and dad and also my fiancée.
The 26-year-old also spoke with love and admiration for his parents
"My mum's always been like: 'Oh, wear that or don't wear that', but I've always loved dressing myself. I've been through so many different and interesting styles. You know, I was into skinny jeans, and then I was into the skater look with the baggy bottoms and a baggy top."
After getting into the finer details of his work with Superdry and the importance of living an eco-conscious lifestyle, our chat eventually drew to a close, and I remember thinking that Brooklyn was one of the most down-to-earth celebrities I'd ever had the pleasure of interviewing – to this day, that remains the case. I only have lovely things to say about him. There was no sign of a rift between the Beckhams, just a sense that Brooklyn was happily embracing an exciting new chapter with the love of his life.
Brooklyn Beckham's recent statement
Brooklyn surprised the world this week when he released a statement about his family on Instagram. Taking to the platform on 19 January, the 26-year-old noted that he did not wish to "reconcile" with his family, and claimed that his parents, David and Victoria, had "controlled narratives in the press".
Brooklyn released a statement this week, noting that he did not wish to "reconcile" with his parents
"The performative social media posts, family events and inauthentic relationships have been a fixture of the life I was born into. Recently, I have seen with my own eyes the lengths that they'll go through to place countless lies in the media, mostly at the expense of innocent people, to preserve their own facade. But I believe the truth always comes out," he wrote.
Speaking candidly, Brooklyn added that his parents had not been supportive of his relationship with Nicola, particularly in the run-up to their wedding in 2022. "My mum cancelled making Nicola's dress in the eleventh hour despite how excited she was to wear her design, forcing her to urgently find a new dress," Brooklyn declared.
WATCH: Brooklyn and Nicola Peltz Beckham's uncomfortable public moment with mum Victoria caught on camera
"Weeks before our big day, my parents repeatedly pressured and attempted to bribe me into signing away the rights to my name, which would have affected me, my wife, and our future children. They were adamant on me signing before my wedding date because then the terms of the deal would be initiated. My holdout affected the payday, and they have never treated me the same since."
Currently, Victoria and David have yet to publicly react to Brooklyn's statement, which you can read in full below.
I have been silent for years and made every effort to keep these matters private. Unfortunately, my parents and their team have continued to go to the press, leaving me with no choice but to speak for myself and tell the truth about only some of the lies that have been printed.
I do not want to reconcile with my family. I'm not being controlled, I'm standing up for myself for the first time in my life.
For my entire life, my parents have controlled narratives in the press about our family. The performative social media posts, family events and inauthentic relationships have been a fixture of the life I was born into. Recently, I have seen with my own eyes the lengths that they'll go through to place countless lies in the media, mostly at the expense of innocent people, to preserve their own facade. But I believe the truth always comes out.
My parents have been trying endlessly to ruin my relationship since before my wedding, and it hasn't stopped. My mum cancelled making Nicola's dress in the eleventh hour despite how excited she was to wear her design, forcing her to urgently find a new dress. Weeks before our big day, my parents repeatedly pressured and attempted to bribe me into signing away the rights to my name, which would have affected me, my wife, and our future children. They were adamant on me signing before my wedding date because then the terms of the deal would be initiated. My holdout affected the payday, and they have never treated me the same since. During the wedding planning, my mum went so far as to call me 'evil' because Nicola and I chose to include my Nanny Sandra, and Nicola's Naunni at our table, because they both didn't have their husbands. Both of our parents had their own tables equally adjacent to ours.
The night before our wedding, members of my family told me that Nicola was 'not blood and 'not family.' Since the moment I started standing up for myself with my family, I've received endless attacks from my parents, both privately and publicly, that were sent to the press on their orders. Even my brothers were sent to attack me on social media, before they ultimately blocked me out of nowhere this last Summer. My mum hijacked my first dance with my wife, which had been planned weeks in advance to a romantic love song. In front of our 500 wedding guests, Marc Anthony called me to the stage, where in the schedule was planned to be my romantic dance with my wife but instead my mum was waiting to dance with me instead. She danced very inappropriately on me in front of everyone. I've never felt more uncomfortable or humiliated in my entire life. We wanted to renew our vows so we could create new memories of our wedding day that bring us joy and happiness, not anxiety and embarrassment.
My wife has been consistently disrespected by my family, no matter how hard we've tried to come together as one. My mum has repeatedly invited women from my past into our lives in ways that were clearly intended to make us both uncomfortable.
Despite this, we still travelled to London for my dad's birthday and were rejected for a week as we waited in our hotel room trying to plan quality time with him. He refused all of our attempts, unless it was at his big birthday party with a hundred guests and cameras at every corner. When he finally agreed to see me, it was under the condition that Nicola wasn't invited. It was a slap in the face. Later, when my family travelled to LA, they refused to see me at all.
My family values public promotion and endorsements above all else. Brand Beckham comes first. Family "love" is decided by how much you post on social media, or how quickly you drop everything to show up and pose for a family photo opp, even if it's at the expense of our professional obligations. We've gone out of our way for years to show up and support at every fashion show, every party, and every press activity to show 'our perfect family'. But the one time my wife asked for my mum's support to save displaced dogs during the LA fires, my mum refused.
The narrative that my wife controls me is completely backwards. I have been controlled by my parents for most of my life. I grew up with overwhelming anxiety. For the first time in my life, since stepping away from my family, that anxiety has disappeared. I wake up every morning grateful for the life I chose, and have found peace and relief.
My wife and I do not want a life shaped by image, press, or manipulation. All we want peace, privacy and happiness for us and our future family.
David and Victoria's eldest son has accused his fashion designer mum of causing great upset when she pulled out of providing her daughter-in-law's 2022 bridal look
What's it like to grow up as one of the world's most famous "nepo babies"? We asked the experts to reveal the effect of fame on children amid Brooklyn's shocking revelations
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