David Beckham's nephew's life is a world away from that of his mega-rich family. Freddie Every said their relationship broke down and he went years without seeing them.
Freddie, 20, grew up playing with his cousins at David and Victoria Beckham's posh home, but, speaking in 2018, he said he had been frozen out and spoke of his struggle living with his dad in temporary housing.
He said he was taking a bricklaying course to make ends meet while watching old playmate Brooklyn Beckham, who recently got married to Nicola Peltz at her family's £76 million Florida beach house, living the high life, reports the Mirror. It was when Freddie's mum, Lynne, who is David's older sister, split from his dad Colin in 2010 that everything changed.
Mum and younger brother Josh, 16, lives in a £470,000 home that his dad claimed was purchased by Becks. In 2018, however, Freddie said that he and his father lived on benefits in a one-bedroom flat on a council estate.
He said: "I’m filled with mixed emotions. I just want to be able to go for a meal and talk and catch up. I’m not asking for more than that.
"Growing up we saw them loads and I have so many happy memories of playing at their house, doing Easter egg hunts and playing on quad bikes. Then suddenly it all stopped and I am on the outside looking in, only seeing them live their lives on Instagram or on the TV.
"We have so much in common still. I love football and am into fashion too – but I never get to share that with them. I watched a documentary David did for TV three times to see if he mentioned me at all. But he didn’t, and that was hard."
Freddie's life could not be more different to that of his cousins, despite the fact Brooklyn is just 21 months older. A millionaire in his own right, Brooklyn has modelled for Burberry, released a book of his photography and got his own cooking show.
Brooklyn tied the knot with his American heiress bride in a lavish £3million ceremony and David got the newlyweds an electric 1954 Jaguar as a wedding gift. Meanwhile, Freddie was pedalling around the East End on a dilapidated mountain bike because he can’t afford driving lessons and taking home £50 a week from his first job on a noodle stall at Romford Market.
Freddie admitted it was difficult seeing the cousins he knew flaunt their superstar lifestyle online. While he and his dad, living on government handouts of about £75 a week, swallow their pride and scour supermarket bargain bins up to three times a day for reduced items to put food on the table in their Dagenham flat.
Freddie said: "I think about the difference in our lives sometimes, but it’s hard to explain. Their lives are hard to imagine.
"I don’t really like seeing it but it is what it is at the end of the day. They are still my family and I’d like to see them again."
Colin and Lynne Beckham had three children together - with the dad agreeing to raise Freddie and older sister Georgina, while Lynne took Josh. At the time of the 2018 interview, Freddie explained he rarely saw his mum and younger brother who are close to Posh and Becks.
Freddie said he could never imagine having the fortune of Brooklyn, but he was working hard to pull himself out of financial hardship. Every day he was going on a bricklaying course at Barking and Dagenham College, where he got a much needed £150-a-month bursary as an apprentice.
Freddie said the last time he saw David was around 2011 at a Chinese restaurant in Harlow where his uncle bunged him £40 as a treat. He last saw his famous cousins and Becks’ wife Victoria was at Pizza Express in Loughton in 2012, but he dreamed of meeting up with his cousins for a meal or football match.
One of Freddie’s fondest memories is playing in the garden with David and Cruz at Grade II-listed Rowneybury House in Hertfordshire, which he affectionately calls Beckingham Palace, and getting Happy Meals from McDonald's as a tot. He admitted he is "proud" of his uncle, but wouldn't tell anyone about his famous relative as he was convinced no one would believe him.
His sister Georgina - a hairdresser just like David’s mum – was barely making enough to rent a house and could not afford the deposit on a rental property. Georgina and Freddie said they understood their famous relatives have their own lives, but both hoped they could improve the relationship with their family.
"I’m lucky he’s famous and he’s all over the internet. Everywhere you look, he’s there, so I can see him,”" she said in 2018. "I don’t need to have a phone call to see what he’s up to. That is better than nothing."
