RICHARD EDEN: The fascinating ‘freebie’ reason the Beckhams have ditched the Sussexes – as my source tells me Victoria ‘never really liked’ Meghan

Prince William and David Beckham shared a private joke at RAF Northolt, in west London, this week as they inspected two London Air Ambulances bought with money they helped raise.

No one knows what so amused the former English football captain and heir apparent, who served as a pilot for the East Anglian Air Ambulance from 2015 to 2017.

But Prince Harry will hope it wasn’t a joke at his expense.

David, 49, was once so close to Harry, 40, that he and his wife Victoria were among the guests when the prince married Meghan Markle at St George’s Chapel, Windsor, in 2018.

But the Beckhams have now distanced themselves from the Duke and Duchess of Sussex for reasons even more fascinating than anyone outside their circle realizes.

David and Victoria, who have a combined fortune estimated at £455 million, 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 and found 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 served by their staff.

And after Meghan moved into Nottingham Cottage at Kensington Palace, Victoria, whose fashion label expanded into beauty products, gave her make-up advice and a member of her staff helped her with facials and haircuts. Free of course.

However, when news of the Beckhams’ generosity hit the press, Meghan was said to be furious. The Beckhams denied leaking any information, but Harry and Meghan reportedly became suspicious of them.

Although David and Victoria attended Harry and Meghan’s wedding ceremony, they were not invited to the evening reception, which was attended by some show business figures who barely knew the Sussexes.

Despite that criticism, David agreed to Harry’s request to fly to Australia, where later that year he hosted the Invictus Games, his celebrated competition for wounded servicemen.

He made the arduous 22-hour journey from London to Sydney, only to find that the Duke would not see him or even have his picture taken with him.

The reason, according to leading biographer Tom Bower, was Meghan. “She wanted no competition in David’s media,” he wrote in his book Revenge. ‘It seemed she was unwilling to tolerate anything flattering about the Beckhams and the Games in the media.’

Prince Harry laughs with David Beckham at an FA reception in South Africa in 2010

It had been another sporting event that brought Beckham and Prince William together. Both played important roles in the 2010 World Cup bid. Although the bid was unsuccessful, the pair remained in touch.

David had always been a staunch Royalist, turning up for the Queen’s Speech every Christmas, dressed in his Sunday best. Years later, he queued for twelve hours to view the queen’s coffin as her body lay in state.

So it’s perhaps no surprise that the Sussexes’ attacks on the royal family failed to impress the Beckhams.

“Both David and Victoria value family and would never change their relationships in the way Harry and Meghan did,” said one of their employees. “The truth is, Victoria never really liked Meghan. She was friendly and welcoming to her, but doesn’t mind keeping in touch.”

Given that David owns a football club in Miami and the couple occupies an increasingly prominent position in American society, it may seem obvious that they will join Harry and Meghan’s court. Instead, the Beckhams are staying with the Windsors.

If power couples were like football teams, this match would be a 2-0 result for William and Catherine.

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