Crime & Safety
Beckhams give £12m Cotswolds estate insight with family photo
For almost a decade, former footballer Sir David Beckham and Spice Girl Lady Victoria Beckham have lived in Oxfordshire.
Owning a mansion in the Cotswolds, the celebrity couple have been embroiled in a public family feud for some time now.
In January, this came to a head last month as their eldest son, Brooklyn, made explosive allegations in a lengthy Instagram post.
READ MORE: Pop legend’s £5.25m Oxfordshire riverside mansion taken off the market
He claimed that his mother “hijacked” his first dance with his wife, Nicola Peltz, and danced “inappropriately on me” in front of their guests, adding that he had never felt more “uncomfortable or humiliated” in his life.
And he also alleged that his wife had been “disrespected” by his family and was not invited to his father’s 50th birthday party.
Relations with their other children are going far more positively for the couple, with their youngest, Harper, having helped get a rose named after her dad.
This year’s new rose, Sir David Beckham (Ausa34b16), is an English shrub rose, with his daughter wishing to mark his 50th birthday last year with something lasting and beautiful.
READ MORE: New Strictly Come Dancing hosts named with Oxfordshire links revealed
The breed of rose is currently being displayed at The Chelsea Flower Show and has seen Sir David post a sweet family snap alongside Harper in their Cotswolds greenhouse.
He captioned the post: “The Sir David Beckham Rose from my little Rose. David Austin, thank you for this honour.”
The father and daughter were photographed with the special rose being the centrepiece of the social media snap.
Harper wore a Barn-style waxed jacket with her blonde hair pulled back neatly in a claw clip, while Sir David was in a plain dark grey T-shirt.
Crime & Safety
Bicester restaurant inviting children to pizza masterclass
The event is taking place at Cecconi’s Bicester and will be led by the restaurant’s head chef, who will guide youngsters through making their own pizza from start to finish.
Each child will roll out dough, shape their pizza and add toppings before enjoying fries, a drink and a scoop of ice cream.
They will also learn about the history of the Margherita pizza.
Each child will receive a paper chef’s hat and apron during the session, which begins at 11am and costs £20 per child.
Up to 20 guests can take part, and advance booking is required.
Accompanying adults can enjoy 20 per cent off their meal while dining during the session.
Crime & Safety
Oxfordshire £12m manor with ‘world-famous’ room for sale
Kirtlington Park House in Kirtlington has been listed by Savills, with the property featuring 17 bedrooms and 15 bathrooms.
The house was designed by James Gibbs and refined by John Sanderson and includes the 36-foot-high Saloon and the “world famous Monkey Room”.
READ MORE: Michael Caine’s £10m riverside Oxfordshire manor in another price drop
Its listing states of the room: “The celebrated Monkey Room features a decorative ceiling painted in 1760 by the French artist Andien de Clermont, depicting monkeys engaged in human pursuits in the mid 18th century style known as singerie.”
Termed one of England’s finest Palladian country houses, the manor is set over around 30 acres with a floor space of approximately 36,700 sq ft.
Kirtlington Park House (Image: Savills)
It was built in 1742 for Sir James Dashwood and since then has been restored, including works to the roof and interiors as well as upgrades to plumbing and electrics.
It features a library, dining and drawing room, a games and cinema room, a billiards room, a gym, plant room and wine cellar.
In addition the property includes The Dairy, a one-bedroom cottage in its own garden with a woodland view, and the Stone Barn Cottages.
READ MORE: Iconic BBC show’s legendary £45m Oxfordshire lakeside mansion up for sale
On the garden, the listing states: “The grounds enjoy exceptional far-reaching views across the Oxfordshire countryside towards the Chiltern Hills.
“The landscape includes the celebrated Capability Brown lake positioned in the far distance to create a masterful sense of perspective.”
Mr Brown was a famous 18th century landscape garden architect.
Crime & Safety
Oxford private school community XI in Chelsea football match
The Teddies Select XI took on Chelsea FC Soccer Schools players at the Premier League club’s Surrey training ground on May 15.
The fixture marks the first community match in the partnership between St Edward’s School in Woodstock Road and Chelsea FC, which was announced earlier this year.
READ MORE: Oxford pupils meet Reece James as Chelsea partnership begins
As well as the independent school increasing its boys’ and girls’ teams, the partnership has seen the Teddies Select XI assembled, a squad of 11- and 12-year-old players drawn from local state schools, clubs and independent schools in the local area.
There are three teams in this Teddies Select cohort – U11 Boys, U11 Girls and U12 Boys – with each team playing a competitive match on professional-grade pitches at Chelsea’s training ground, facing a side from the Soccer Schools department’s Player Development Programme.
The Teddies Select XI played Chelsea in a football match (Image: St Edward’s School)
The match is intended to be the first of many, establishing a regular fixture that connects young players in Oxfordshire with the leading football club.
Steve Shipp, football projects manager at Chelsea FC, said: “We want to give people from the Oxfordshire area the Chelsea experience, and we couldn’t have done that without Teddies.
“Though our partnership with the school, we are hoping to develop our work and engage with other schools in the local area.”
The warden (head) of St Edward’s termed the partnership “transformational”.
Pupils from St Edward’s training with Chelsea FC men’s captain Reece James at the start of the partnership (Image: St Edward’s School)
“We are delighted,” said Alistair Chirnside, “to be able to share the expertise with young footballers beyond our school gates in a community programme as part of the partnership”.
Meanwhile dad of Year 7 Chipping Norton School pupil, Toby, called it a “brilliant experience”.
Alex Ward said: “The standard of football on the pitches is high and the Chelsea coaches really have the kids engaged, working hard on a range of skills and having lots of fun.”
The Teddies Select XI played Chelsea in a football match (Image: St Edward’s School)
Rachel Henshilwood, director of development and commercial partnerships, added that a key aim in the partnership was to bring world-class expertise and coaching to the Oxfordshire community.
She added: “The Teddies Select XI project really embodies those aims, and we look forward to cheering them on as a flagship team for the partnership.
READ MORE: Oxford private school reveals major expansion programme
“We think all players will benefit from this unique experience working together as one team.”
Jen Law, director of sport, said that the popularity of football at Teddies has increased.
She added: “With Chelsea coaches working alongside our own Football Professional, pupils gain access to professional coaching of the highest standard, tailored programmes designed to improve skill development, and pathways that build resilience, leadership and teamwork on and off the field.”
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