David Beckham was once so close to the Duke of Sussex that he and his wife, Victoria, were among the guests when Harry married Meghan Markle at St George’s Chapel, Windsor, in 2018.

The Beckhams have since distanced themselves from Harry and Meghan, but their links to the Prince and Princess of Wales continue to deepen.

I can disclose that Prince William has appointed Beckham’s former public relations chief as the new Head of Communications for his landmark Homewards initiative to help end homelessness.

Homewards is a five-year charity project run by William and Catherine’s Royal Foundation.

Victoria Shires, 34, was for three years the Head of PR for Beckham’s DB Ventures, a portfolio of brands and businesses that brings in millions for the former England football captain.

‘It’s been a great first few weeks at the Royal Foundation of the Prince and Princess of Wales,’ says Shires, who started her new job last month.

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Prince William has appointed Beckham’s former public relations chief as the new Head of Communications for his landmark Homewards initiative (pictured today in Cape Town)

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Victoria Squires used to work for ITV and was PR guru to the Beckhams

Her connections already appear to be paying dividends. She spent seven years working in programme publicity at ITV, and the heir to the throne’s two-part Homewards documentary was broadcast by ITV1 last week. ‘It’s been lovely to have launching that as my first project here,’ she says.

Last month, William and Beckham were pictured sharing a private joke together as they inspected two London Air Ambulances bought with money they had helped to raise.

This week, the Beckhams’ eldest child, Brooklyn, 25, was asked whether he saw more of Harry and Meghan, or William and Catherine. ‘Probably William,’ Brooklyn told the US podcast Watch What Happens Live. ‘He’s just the sweetest guy ever. He really is. He’s really down to earth. He’s a really good guy.’

David and Victoria, who have a combined fortune estimated at £455million, were once so close to the Sussexes that they made a very generous gesture in the run-up to their wedding.

When Meghan returned to her native Los Angeles to find paparazzi camped outside her mother’s home, the Beckhams offered the former actress the use of their six-bedroom, Italian-style villa in the city, where she was waited on by their staff.

And after Meghan moved into Nottingham Cottage at Kensington Palace, Victoria, whose fashion label was expanding into beauty products, gave her advice on make-up and a member of her staff provided her with help on facials and hairdressing. Free of charge, of course.

When news of the Beckhams’ generosity made the Press, however, Meghan was said to be outraged. The Beckhams denied that they had leaked any information but hyper-sensitive reportedly Harry and Meghan became distrustful of them.

While David and Victoria did go on to attend Harry and Meghan’s wedding ceremony, they were not invited to the evening reception, which was attended by some showbusiness figures the Sussexes barely knew.

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David and Victoria Beckham attend the Vogue Fashion Fund Awards Dinner in New York

Despite that snub, David agreed to Harry’s request to fly to Australia, where he was hosting the Invictus Games, his celebrated competition for injured servicemen and women, later that year.

He made the arduous 22-hour journey from London to Sydney only to discover that the duke would not see him or even be pictured with him.

The reason, according to distinguished biographer Tom Bower, was Meghan. ‘She wanted no competition in the media from David,’ he wrote in his book, Revenge. ‘It seemed she was not prepared to tolerate anything flattering regarding the Beckhams and the Games to appear in the media.’

It had been a different sporting event that brought Beckham together with Prince William. Both played an important part in the 2010 bid for the football World Cup. Although the bid was unsuccessful, the pair stayed in touch.

David had always been an ardent royalist, who would stand up for the Queen’s Speech every Christmas, dressed in his Sunday best. Years later, he queued for 12 hours to view the Queen’s coffin when her body was lying in state.

Sophie ‘so happy’ to be home after Jones split

Following Sophie Turner’s toxic divorce from US pop star Joe Jonas, with whom she has two young daughters, the Game of Thrones star is finding it comforting to be back in Britain.

The Northampton-born actress was awarded a Harper’s Bazaar Woman of the Year award this week for her performance in ITV drama Joan. ‘I’m so happy to be back,’ says Turner, 28, who wore a fringed white Louis Vuitton minidress to the ceremony at Claridge’s in Mayfair.

‘It felt as if my life was on pause until I returned to England,’ she says. ‘I just never really feel like myself when I’m not in London, with my friends and family.’

After the breakdown of her four-year marriage, the actress has found love again with Peregrine ‘Perry’ Pearson, Viscount Cowdray’s son and heir.

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Sophie Turner Harper’s Bazaar Women of the Year Awards, Arrivals, Claridge’s, on Tuesday

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Peregrine Pearson and Sophie Turner attend Stanley Zhu’s Year of Dragon Celebration at Dixie Queen on February 10, 2024 in London

King seeking a new lead coachman

Here’s the perfect job for an equestrian royalist: King Charles is seeking a head coachman.

The job advert on the royal website explains: ‘You’ll manage our team of dedicated Liveried Helpers, who care for some of the most photographed horses in the world.’

Based at Windsor, the successful candidate must have ‘experience in either driving horses or postilion driving’. The salary is ‘competitive’. Giddy-up!

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King Charles speaks with Nile Rogers during an International Sustainability reception at Buckingham Palace in London on Wednesday

First Dates Fred rakes in a fortune

He’s the charming maitre d’ on Channel 4 show First Dates, and Fred Sirieix certainly knows how to look after himself, too.

The French sommelier, 52, has served himself a £270,000 dividend at his business.

New figures for Art of Service disclose that it made a £750,000 profit in the year to July, taking accumulated earnings held by him in the business to almost £2.1million.

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First Dates’ Fred Sirieix hosts a matchmaking experience at Battersea Dogs and Cats Home

How J Lo got to grips with wrestling role

Jennifer Lopez clearly took her role seriously as a mother-of-four in the new film Unstoppable.

The biopic is based on American wrestling champion Anthony Robles, who overcame the odds after being born with one leg.

J-Lo, 55, who plays his mother, Judy Robles, reveals that she invited her on-screen children to her home for authenticity.

‘We had them come to my house and I became like mama bear on set,’ she tells me at the London screening in Cineworld Leicester Square.

‘You have to have that comfortable physical thing, as well as an emotional thing.’

The actress adds: ‘It was a beautiful character to play, and I really enjoyed kind of losing myself.’

The film is produced by Artists Equity – a company owned by her estranged husband, Ben Affleck, and she says it was ‘relatable for women dealing with challenging relationships’.

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J Lo attends the ‘Unstoppable’ World Premiere, 2024 at Toronto Film Festival, Canada

Harry and Meghan absent from Hollywood pal’s birthday bash

Is all well between the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and their Hollywood chums David Foster and his wife, Katharine McPhee?

I ask only because neither Prince Harry nor Meghan were spotted at Foster’s spectacular 75th birthday show at the packed Hollywood Bowl on Sunday.

And there was no birthday message beamed on the big screen; no ‘Sorry we can’t be there’ announcement.

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Prince Harry and Meghan visit Abel Tasman National Park in New Zealand on October 29

Foster, 75, a Canadian record producer and musician, was said to be so close to Harry that he was described as a ‘father figure’ after the prince’s fallout with King Charles.

Foster and McPhee, 40, his fifth wife, who attended the same school as Meghan, offered support to the Sussexes after they fled Britain. Their young son was a playmate for Prince Archie.