By Evelyn Fernandez-Jarvis, Senior Lifestyle Editor
Is there such a thing as being too lucky in life? Can a successful brand become the root cause of separation from the people we deem the closest too?
I have been asking myself this question ever since the infamous Brooklyn Beckham decided to release his version of events to why he no longer wants a contactable relationship with his family. In my opinion, whilst trying to stay as neutral as possible, it made me think about the costs of fame and fortune. This one event on instagram had me and my housemates immediately glued to our phones, trying to put all the pieces together as if we were the detectives on a case of family estrangement.
The Beckhams’ lives are extremely hard to visualise as something that is a reality, as it is posed as a life of glamour and the biggest statement of elegance. One that the majority of people will never experience in their life and yet it is one that we indulge and aspire to be a part of constantly. Whether it is images on Vogue of Victoria’s new line of clothes or a family picture taken from the most wanted estate on the Cotswolds, it is clear that the majority of people are wanting just a sliver of what this life may feel like.
It reminded me of a conversation that took place in the Netflix TV show Emily in Paris, when Pierre Caldoult speaks to Emily at the Ballet. It is there that I think Emily speaks for us all when stating that we worship designers, or in this context the glamorous elite, because we want just a short taste to feel a part of what they have everyday. It’s what keeps them in business, it’s what keeps them in magazines and it is what we as consumers want to see. We dictate what we see and we want to see this art of the upper-class life on our screens constantly. It is something to aim for, something to imagine.
It is no secret that the Beckham family have an impressive lineage of achievements and a huge prominence in the UK, sometimes even being referred to as the ‘royal family’. This rhetoric is fuelled by people seeing a realness to them, even though they are meant to be celebrities, it is clear that seeing David Beckham rise to achievement really enacted a lot of people growing up as working-class that they too can achieve anything that they want if they put their mind to it.
We saw both documentaries in 2023 and 2025 produced by Netflix, focusing on both Victoria and David, and their journeys from past to present day. Personally, I would definitely say that even if you are not in the world of football or fashion, they are both extremely interesting to watch. The sheer rarity to get a personable account in the lives of a family that is deemed so luxurious had me and many other watchers hooked. However, since the rumours of Brooklyn Beckham’s estrangement there has understandably been a lot of quiet echoes of speculation on what actually happened, the people wanted the truth. And whilst Brooklyn’s instagram post did clarify that there was in fact an ongoing feud, the further statements made it difficult to judge who was in the right and who was in the wrong. The commentary solidified only one statement, there are two sides of a story, as well as the question of how exactly ‘Posh Spice’ was dancing at Brooklyn’s wedding.
This rebuttal of speculation and narratives being spun around highlighted something even more odd. That the quote on quote ‘Brand Beckham’ sometimes has consequences. Living a life of luxury creates an illusion to the public that the people that occupy these lives have perfection in every aspect of their existence. The idea that nothing could ever hinder how they go about their day to day tasks is completely unfathomable. However, this illusion is just that, even though the creation of online platforms and magazines hold an important aspect on inspiring lifestyle decisions, it is also something that has taken hours to ensure it permits a certain look that aligns with what any public figure may stand for.
And yet questions of how involved should a parent be in their children’s relationship? or Should you forgive your children no matter what? Still persist in these public figures’ families, as much as they may persist in other peoples. So I will now ask whether this perception of life that we scroll past every day is healthy? Personally, I love it, I love watching aesthetically pleasing videos and idolising outfits that I will probably never obtain myself, however let a girl dream? This art of viewing and indulging in this lifestyle can inspire you to do the same at a more affordable rate. From the perspective of someone that views this life from afar, it can be almost thrilling to know that your dream life is being lived by other people.
However, when trying to consider what this life may feel like for other public figures and their families, it becomes more complicated to empathise with different people, it is easier to connect on feelings that you have genuinely felt and experienced. But with this many people having not experienced the ‘glamourous’ life on either side of the argument, the idea of mere relatability is completely lost when this is turned into a public matter. So does having a glamorous life lead to people’s ultimate downfall?
The answer is sometimes, especially because the life of fame is not always so luxurious as it seems. It can be a world that is quite cut-throat and vicious where all private affairs to do with their life, synonymous to the Beckham issue, become something that is aired to strangers to have an opinion on something that is quite frankly none of their business. The only valid opinion that I can have on this particular case is that the Beckhams PR company will definitely have the situation handled in a glamorous way.
Image Via Unsplash, by Maurits Bausenhart