David Beckham reportedly played peacemaker during a row between Prince Harry and James Corden after the royal made a “cruel comment” about the actor’s appearance during a night out in London.
According to the Mail, the incident occurred in December 2011 at the Arts Club in Mayfair. Beckham, then England’s football captain, stepped in to defuse tensions and prevent the situation from escalating.
Corden had finished performing in One Man, Two Guvnors and joined Beckham, Harry, and friends for a “pre-Christmas piss-up.”
However, upon arriving, he found the group had been drinking for hours. It was then that Harry allegedly made a remark about Corden’s appearance that left the actor upset, with the Mail choosing not to republish the comment.
The source added: “Then it all kicked off, James was furious. It quickly emerged that Harry had told a joke and James definitely did not find it funny.
“To an outsider, it would have looked like there was a right carry on taking place.”
As the atmosphere soured the sober Corden had taken issue with Prince Harry but luckily Beckham was able to play diplomat to calm the situation.
“Ever the peacemaker, he talked to both sides and reassured Corden that no harm was meant by the cruel comment,” the source added.
“He is loved by everyone, I mean, who wouldn’t want to do as they were asked by a legend like him?
“He did a great job and managed to talk everyone around. Eventually, James calmed down and the night carried on. In fact, some of them went on from the Arts Club for another drink at the Savoy.
“As a result of the furore, a bromance was formed between the ever impressive networker Corden and Prince Harry.”
On the back of this, Corden was able to talk Harry into appearing on his Late, Late Show down the line in 2021 and they appeared calm and relaxed as they rapped the Fresh Prince of Bel Air theme.
More recently, Corden returned to the Old Vic to star in The Constituent opposite Anna Maxwell Martin and memorably stopped a performance so fans could watch England take part in their Euro 2024 penalty shootout against Switzerland.