Victoria Beckham

Victoria Caroline Beckham, born 17 April 1974 is an English singer-songwriter, dancer, model, actress, fashion designer and businesswoman. During her rise to fame with the late 1990s girl pop group the Spice Girls, Beckham was dubbed Posh Spice, a nickname first coined by the British pop music magazine, Top of the Pops in the July 1996 issue. Since the Spice Girls pursued separate careers, she has had a solo pop music career, scoring four UK Top 10 singles. Her first single to be released, "Out of Your Mind", reached Number 2 in the UK Singles Chart and is her highest chart entry to date. During her solo career, she has been signed to Virgin Records and Telstar Records.

Beckham has found more success as an internationally recognised and photographed style icon. Her career in fashion includes designing a line of jeans for Rock & Republic and later designing her own denim brand, dVb Style. Beckham has brought out her own range of sunglasses and fragrance, entitled Intimately Beckham, which has been released in the UK and the US. In association with the Japanese store Samantha Thavasa and Shiatzy Chen, she has produced a range of handbags and jewellery. In addition, Beckham has released two best-selling books; one her autobiography, the other a fashion guide.

In her television ventures, Beckham has participated in five official documentaries and reality shows about her, including Being Victoria Beckham and The Real Beckhams. Her last documentary was Victoria Beckham: Coming to America, which documented her move to the US with her family in 2007. She has since made a cameo appearance in an episode of American TV series Ugly Betty, and been a guest judge on Project Runway, Germany's Next Topmodel, and American Idol. As of 2009, the couple's joint wealth is estimated at £125 million.

Personal life

In 1997, she started dating footballer David Beckham after they had met at a charity football match, prompting him to request a meeting with her. Of their initial meeting, she said, "I didn't really know who he was. I was never into football. The couple announced their engagement in 1998 and were dubbed "Posh and Becks" by the media. On 4 July 1999 they were married by the Bishop of Cork, Paul Colton, at Luttrellstown Castle, Ireland. The wedding attracted much media coverage.Beckham's team-mate, Gary Neville, was the best man, and the couple's four month old son Brooklyn was the ring bearer.Most of the media were kept away from the ceremony as an exclusive deal with OK! magazine had been arranged, but photographs were released showing the Beckhams sitting on golden thrones. Victoria wearing a diamond coronet created for her by jewellery designer Slim Barrett. A total of 437 staff were employed for the wedding reception, which was estimated to have cost £500,000 ($823,650). The couple bought what would become their most famous home for £2.5 million in 1999; the property, which is set in 24 acres (97,000 m2) of land, was duly given a £3 million renovation and was subsequently dubbed Beckingham Palace by the media.

Victoria and David Beckham have three sons: Brooklyn Joseph (born 4 March 1999, Westminster, London), Romeo James (born 1 September 2002, Westminster, London), and Cruz David (born 20 February 2005, Madrid, Spain). Elton John and David Furnish are reportedly the godparents of Brooklyn and Romeo, and the godmother is Elizabeth Hurley. The Beckhams have stated that they would like to have more children, especially a daughter. On 9 January 2011, it was announced that the Beckhams are expecting their fourth child.

In January 2000, a tip-off to Scotland Yard detectives exposed a plot to kidnap Victoria and Brooklyn Beckham and hold them at a house in Hampstead, London. The family was then moved to a secret location, but no arrests were made. Later in March 2000, she received a death threat prior to performing at the Brit Awards with the Spice Girls, and in the show's rehearsal, a red laser light appeared on her chest and she was rushed off stage. After a fire door was found to be lodged open, it was thought that there had been an assassin there, and Beckham later revealed that she was terrified by the experience. In November 2002, five people were arrested after another plot for her kidnap was infiltrated by a tabloid newspaper. All charges were dropped after a witness was deemed unreliable. In 2004, allegations surfaced that David Beckham had had a brief affair with a former personal assistant, Rebecca Loos. The affair had apparently taken place when David had moved to Madrid, although he denied all the allegations.

The family moved to Los Angeles, California on 12 July 2007 as a result of David being signed to play for the LA Galaxy. On their arrival in America on 12 July 2007, Victoria and David were met by hundreds of paparazzi and media representatives, causing a media frenzy. They currently reside in a $22 million Beverly Hills mansion with ten security guards. To create publicity for their move to America, the couple were photographed in their underwear for the fashion magazine, W, which also included an interview in which Victoria said that David's supposed affair with Loos had made their marriage stronger. On 29 May 2011, it was announced that the Beckhams would be settling back to England after the birth of their fourth child, which was also confirmed as due in early July.

It was reported in October 2007 that Beckham had turned down the opportunity to appear in Sex and the City: The Movie. She stated in an interview: "...asked to be in the Sex and the City film, which I would have loved to have done, but because I am in full-on Spice Girls rehearsal mode, unfortunately, I can't do it. Beckham's marriage and career as a singer have made her the 52nd richest woman in Britain. and the 19th richest person in Britain with husband David, with an estimated joint wealth of £112 million ($225 million USD). In 2010, Beckhams's charity work with Save the Children earned her a nomination for the Do Something With Style Award from the VH1 Do Something Awards. The awards show, produced by Vh1, is dedicated to honoring people who do good and is powered by Do Something, an organization that aims to empower, celebrate, and inspire young people.