Beckhams vow legal action over nanny's claims
David and Victoria Beckham have vowed to take legal action after a torrent of fresh allegations about the state of their marriage.
The claims that their six-year union was on the rocks were made by their former nanny who is understood to have received in the region of £300,000 (€440,475) for her story, plastered across seven pages of the News of the World.
A spokesman for the Beckhams said: “We are consulting our lawyers with a view to taking legal action.”
On Saturday night the Beckhams’ legal team failed in an attempt to get a High Court injunction against nanny Abbie Gibson, 27, claiming she was in breach of a confidentiality contract.
They argued the contract had included an obligation not to speak about the Beckhams’ private lives but the judge, Mr Justice Langley, ruled that the newspaper could publish.
Ms Gibson, who is being represented by publicist Max Clifford, told the News of the World that she had lived under the Beckhams’ roof for nearly two years, that she had become a friend to 31-year-old Victoria and had kept a diary.
She alleged that she had witnessed a series of rows between the couple.
Asked why allegations about the Beckhams’ marriage were in the public interest, News of the World associate editor Phil Taylor told BBC Radio Five Live: “The Beckhams, Britain’s most famous celebrity couple, have made millions portraying their relationship as a perfect marriage.
“Abbie lived in their house for two years and she heard their blazing rows and in fact it’s got so bad that at Christmas it reached breaking point and she actually heard David say to her that he wanted to split.
“The fact is it did start off, and Abbie says this, as a happy marriage. All the cracks appeared when they moved to Spain.
“What’s clear is that Victoria is absolutely madly in love with him and would do anything to stay with him and David hasn’t been feeling the same over the past few months.”
Mr Clifford said the decision not to grant the Beckhams an injunction over the issue of confidentiality was a major development in press reporting.
He said: “It sends shockwaves out to every major star that’s got every person signing confidentiality and thinks that they’re safe no matter what they do and how they treat people.
“The Beckhams got what you would think was a totally watertight confidentiality agreement and the judge overruled it.
“It’s the biggest change in things for a long time and newspaper editors are jumping up and down with joy.”
