David and Victoria Beckham appear to be ruffling feathers again – but this time, not within their own family.
The star couple has reportedly rubbed their neighbours up the wrong way with the latest plans for their Cotswolds home.
David, 50, and Victoria, 51, purchased the countryside estate for a cool £6.15million in 2016, but thanks to several developments, the Grade II-listed farmhouse near Chipping Norton in Oxfordshire is now believed to be worth a staggering £12m.
The ex-footballer and fashion designer, who have a combined net worth of $673m (£506m), according to the Sunday Times’ 2025 Rich List – split their time between the Cotswolds, London, Miami, Beverly Hills, and Dubai.
But despite several properties to their name, they’re still keen to keep jazzing up this one in Great Tew by installing pond lighting – which other locals reckon is going to turn the place into Blackpool illuminations.
Residents nearby have expressed concerns that David and Victoria’s plan to add festooned lighting will affect light pollution, wildlife, and the surrounding area.
James Worthington said in a comment on the Beckhams’ application: ‘If I am not amiss, this pond “lake” is in the countryside in a rural setting with fields, etc., around Maplewood Barn.
‘Yet what is proposed is more akin to Miami or Florida, not Great Tew. Festooned lighting hanging along a “proposed bridge”… spotlights, is this really Great Tew, or have I mistaken this area for Blackpool?’
He went on to ask where planned ‘wall lights’ would be positioned, and added: ‘If the applicants want to live in suburbia, then why come to an area like Great Tew? What about the poor foraging and commuting bats?’
The neighbour further suggested that the lights could become ‘a source of annoyance to people’ and ‘harmful to wildlife’, saying he felt they could ‘undermine enjoyment of the countryside or the night sky’.
This isn’t the first time Posh and Becks have become caught up in a row with neighbours over their lake, which they added in 2021.
Upon initially securing permission, they were told it must be surrounded by wildflower meadows and native trees, resulting in an ‘overall informal and natural character, with subtle expressions of an organic parkland-style landscaping tying the lake to the house’.
But last October, it was reported that they also added 1,000 sq ft of sand at the lake’s edge at their 43-acre property, which they did not seek permission for.
A source told The Sun: ‘Neighbours think it is totally out of character for the surrounding area, and they are very twitchy around adhering to the rules.’
West Oxfordshire District Council then confirmed: ‘A report of a planning breach has been received, and it will now be investigated.’
A source close to the Beckhams said, however, that they followed regulations ‘to the letter’.
What’s more, last April, David asked planners for the right to create an ‘agricultural storage barn for hay/straw and agricultural equipment’, with his passion for beekeeping well documented on social media.
Strongly objecting, villager Harriet Jones told the council in a letter: ‘This is just the latest in a long line of applications to build new structures on this land, plus a giant lake. Why do famous people move out to the country and then clutter up their land with endless buildings and make silly alterations? It makes no sense.’
In fact, since moving into the house, David and Victoria have clashed with locals. At one point, they withdrew an application to build a second access road into their mansion.
Internal family troubles
But in recent months, it’s been their internal family that’s captured press attention, as they remain estranged from eldest son Brooklyn, 27.
In January, the budding chef issued an astonishing takedown of his mum and dad via his Instagram Story, accusing them of ‘trying endlessly to ruin [his] relationship since before [his] wedding, and it hasn’t stopped’.
He also alleged that his wife, Nicola Peltz, had been ‘disrespected’ by his family.
Despite his parents reaching out with birthday tributes this month and younger sibling Cruz saying he ‘hopes’ to patch things up, Brooklyn has no desire to ‘reconcile’, stating that the former England player and ex-Spice Girls member prioritise ‘Brand Beckham’ over genuine relationships, always seeking to control public narratives.
Instead, he’s happy in the States with actress Nicola, 31, and her billionaire family, whom she says have welcomed him like ‘another son’.
Speaking in a new interview with Elle, the Lola star seemed to make a sly dig at the Beckhams: ‘He gets along really well with my brothers. They play soccer together a lot.’
Nicola, whose parents are billionaire tycoon Nelson, 83, and his wife Claudia, 71, also comes from a big family. She has one sister and six brothers: Brittany, Matthew, Will, Brad, Diesel, Zachary, and Gregory.
Heaping praise on her other half, she added: ‘Brooklyn supports my dreams and is the sweetest when I get too hard on myself.
‘He has the biggest heart in the world.’
Reps for David and Victoria Beckham have been contacted for comment.
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