David Beckham makes amazing vow on receipt of his knighthood as he pledges to make a difference to the UK
Sir David Beckham has vowed to use his knighthood “for the good of the UK” as he received the honour from the King. Friends of the star said he would not “sit idly back” and plans to accelerate his charity work, and “try and make a difference.”
The pal added: “There are some celebrities who get a knighthood and you don’t hear from them again…but David wants to use this incredible honour to champion the causes he believes in, and raise their profile. He is determined to give back to the UK.”
The football star, 50, who was recognised for his services to sport and charity in a ceremony at Windsor Castle, has described accepting the honour as the “proudest moment” of his career. Sir David has supported a number of charity causes, including serving as a goodwill ambassador for humanitarian aid organisation Unicef since 2005.
Last year he was named an ambassador for The King’s Foundation, an educational charity established by the King in 1990. And speaking after the ceremony, which was attended by his wife Lady Victoria, and his parents, he said of his charitable drive: “All the things that I do, I do out of love.
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“I don’t do it because I’m forced to do it, I don’t do it because I have to do it, I do it because it’s important because I think there’ll always be something to do,” Sir David said. “I do believe that my work will never stop. I enjoy work. I got brought up with the right values to have respect for people and that will continue.”
The former England captain was dressed in a grey three-piece suit, which was made by his wife, when he received his knighthood. He was accompanied by Lady Victoria who wore a ruched navy Bela Midi dress from her own collection, fitted with a Stephen Jones hat and pointed-toe heels.
The pair smiled together for photographs in the courtyard with Lady Victoria looking up proudly at her husband before posing with his parents, Ted and Sandra Beckham.
Asked whether he managed to speak to Charles during the ceremony, Sir David said: “He was quite impressed with my suit. “He’s kind of the most elegantly dressed man that I know, so he inspired quite a few of my looks over the years and he definitely inspired this look. It was something that my wife made me.
“I looked at old pictures of him when he was quite young in morning suits and I was like, OK, that’s what I want to wear, so I gave it to my wife and she did it.” He said he has felt emotional over the knighthood since he was recognised in the King’s Birthday Honours earlier this year, and that he has “always been a huge fan of the monarchy”.
“I’ve been very obviously lucky in my career to have won what I’ve won and done what I’ve done but to receive an honour like this, of a knight, is beyond anything that I ever thought that I would receive,” Sir David said. “To be honest, a young boy from the east end of London, born in Leytonstone, and here at Windsor Castle, being honoured by His Majesty the King – the most important and the most respected institution in the world – it’s quite a moment. This is without doubt my proudest moment.” He added that it was a “huge honour” to be recognised for both his sporting career and for the philanthropic work he has done since he was “probably 17”.
Speaking about his drive, Sir David said he realised early on that people listen to him and that that was a “powerful tool” in the world of charity. “I think mostly it’s because of the career that I’ve had and the teams that I’ve played for and the things that I’ve won and the respect that I’ve gained throughout my career, and I think that that is why people listen to me,” he said. “And I think it’s a very powerful tool to have in charity. I just found very quickly that we could make change with things that I said and things that I got involved in and I think that’s why it’s so important to me.”
Sir David married his wife Victoria in 1999 and the couple share four children together – Brooklyn, Romeo, Cruz and Harper. Yesterday Romeo paid tribute on social media to his father. He said: “No-one deserves this more than you, love you so much…congrats Sir dad.”Sir David made his Premier League debut for Manchester United in 1995 and was part of the team that earned a dramatic Champions League final victory in 1999 when they beat Bayern Munich with two late goals.
In total, he scored 85 goals and collected honours including six Premier League titles and two FA Cups as a footballer, before retiring from the sport in 2013.
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