David and Victoria Beckham once found themselves at the centre of a royal row after a private birthday celebration for daughter Harper at Buckingham Palace reportedly left King Charles “seismic with rage”.

An older gentleman in a gray suit and striped tie is walking with a solemn expression, accompanied by individuals in military un

King Charles III(Image: Getty Images)

King Charles was reportedly left “seismic with rage” after David and Victoria Beckham accepted an invitation from Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor for their daughter Harper’s sixth birthday.

The former footballer had been keen to make the celebration truly memorable, but the party at Buckingham Palace quickly became the subject of furious criticism.

According to Alison Boshoff’s book Brand Beckham, David published a collection of images from the day on Instagram on July 3, 2017.

In one post, he wrote: “Happy Birthday to our special little young lady. Such a special girl who brings so much joy and happiness into our lives. Happy 6th birthday (I can’t believe your 6 already) have the most amazing day we love you pretty lady x”.

The photographs showed Harper in the front quadrangle of Buckingham Palace with her friends. Within the palace, Princess Eugenie was pictured kneeling beside the children, who had come dressed as princesses, several wearing cardboard crowns, reports the Express.

Victoria was absent, fulfilling fashion obligations at the time, but also shared an image of Harper wearing a Princess Elsa costume from Disney’s Frozen.

She captioned it: “Our little birthday princess x Kisses.”

An adult male and a young girl are embracing each other in an open, sandy field, with a large, circular pattern visible in the b

Harper Beckham celebrates her sixth birthday with a trip to Buckingham Palace(Image: INSTAGRAM/DAVIDBECKHAM)

Alison wrote that the posts quickly triggered backlash, with former Queen’s press secretary Dickie Arbiter criticising the Beckhams’ presence at the palace. He stated they had “no right to be there” and asked: “Is it [Buckingham Palace] being opened up as a theme park?” He continued: “It devalues what the place is all about. Why do the Beckhams get special treatment?”

The criticism proved especially uncomfortable given the timing, with observers questioning why the palace was being used for a private birthday party so soon after the Grenfell Tower disaster.

However, according to Brand Beckham, the Beckhams had not independently secured access to Buckingham Palace themselves.

Harper’s celebration had been held at Prince Andrew’s private apartment, following an invitation seemingly extended by his former wife, Sarah Ferguson.

Ferguson had enjoyed a long-standing friendship with Victoria, having first met her when she was a Spice Girl in 1999. The book discloses the two shared numerous acquaintances, including Sir Elton John, and had been guests at his White Tie and Tiara parties.

Nevertheless, it was the choice to share images of the palace visit on social media that allegedly sparked significant concern, according to the Daily Mail’s editor-at-large.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who still has the Freedom of the City of London

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor(Image: PA)

A Palace source reportedly characterised the posts as a “serious breach of protocol”. The source stated: “Prince Charles is apparently seismic with rage and this will only deepen his feud with Prince Andrew.”

They continued: “Photos are absolutely not allowed in the Buckingham Palace quadrangle.”

The source further stated: “Prince William will not be amused.”

There was apparently a feeling that Ferguson had only “got away with” the invitation because the late Queen was spending the summer in Scotland. The next day, David seemed to try to clarify exactly what had happened, insisting that the palace had not been specially opened for Harper.

He posted: “Just to be clear this wasn’t the palace opening the gates for Harper’s birthday party, this was a tea party where us and other guests were invited so it was a beautiful thing to do with my mum, Harper plus a few school friends.”

He continued: “We were honoured to be able to be there … Beautiful tea party.”

The royal link would subsequently take a dramatically different turn.

An adult male and female, along with a young child, are standing together in front of a grand building, dressed formally.

David Beckham, mum Sandra and daughter Harper outside Buckingham Palace(Image: INSTAGRAM/DAVIDBECKHAM)

In November 2025, David was knighted by King Charles at Windsor Castle in recognition of his services to sport and charity.

The former England captain, aged 50, attended the ceremony with Victoria and his parents, Ted and Sandra Beckham, and the couple were photographed smiling together in the castle courtyard.

David said he was “immensely proud” of the honour, while Victoria called him her “knight in shining armour” and said she “couldn’t be prouder” of him.