David Beckham has finally responded to Joe Lycett after he infamously threatened to shred £10,000 if he didn’t sever ties with Qatar before the World Cup.
As was revealed shortly after the deadline and the money was seemingly thrown into a shredder, the comedian didn’t actually shred the sizeable sum and instead gave the money to charity.
However, what the stunt did achieve was raise more awareness surrounding the Gulf state’s human rights abuses and, in particular, their discrimination against the LGBTQ+ community.
Finally, in a special edition of Joe Lycett’sGot Your Back programme on Channel 4, the comedian read out an official statement issued by a spokesperson for Beckham.
Lycett also confirmed on social media that he could not share his opinions on the response but thanked the network for their cooperation throughout the very public ‘Benders Like Beckham’ prank.
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As far as we are aware this is the only statement he or his team have given to any outlet regarding his involvement in Qatar. I have been advised that legally I cannot give my opinion on it, so you’ll have to make up your own minds. (2/4)
I’d like to thank the Got Your Back team and the team at Channel 4 for their extraordinary hard work on this project. Here’s a trailer. (4/4) pic.twitter.com/NDd27wQCst
The spokesperson emphasised that beyond being part of multiple international tournaments down the years, the 47-year-old has “always believed that sport has the power to be a force for good in the world” and “has a genuine ability to bring people together and make a real contribution to communities.
The statement goes on to say: “We understand that there are different and strongly held views about engagement in the Middle East but see it as positive that debate about the key issues has been stimulated directly by the first World Cup being held in the region.
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“We hope that these conversations will lead to greater understanding and empathy towards all people and that progress will be achieved.”
Once again, while the 34-year-old comic has been advised not to comment but – much like the pundits criticised for choosing to attend Qatar 2022 – Lycett, Beckham’s detractors and football fans, in general, will no doubt be reiterating that he could raise these issues from home and without being paid.
The programme itself, which aired on Thursday, 15 December, went on to take aim at official sponsors like McDonald’s and Budweiser for backing the competition. The lattermost continued to promote their brand even after the country banned the sale of beer just days before the competition.
As mentioned above, Lycett also went on to speak to Naser Mohamed, a campaigner who claims to be the first and only openly gay person in Qatar and detailed how he was cut off from his family and friends.
He also went on to claim that he was blocked by Beckham’s Instagram account after he tagged him in a post highlighting the “life-threatening reality of the country’s anti-LGBTQ+ policy with the comment, “this is what is happening”.
You can watch the latest episode of Joe Lycett’s Got Your Back on All4 HERE.
Jimmy Bradbury, Reuben Haycocks, Aoife Anson O’Connell, and Paddy Murphy – better known together as Westside Cowboy – formed back in 2023 when they were students at the Royal Northern College of Music, so while they may not all be from Manchester, they definitely have the spirit of our city at the heart of everything they do.
After playing in different bands across the city throughout their student years, the four-piece joined forces to create Westside Cowboy – an indie rock collective credited with self-coining the genre of ‘Britainicana’.
Put simply, Britainicana is a cultural concept that mixes the hazy, mythic feel of American country and folk, with the sound of raw British punk, indie rock, and small-town life.
Westside Cowboy have released their debut album, It Goes On / Credit: Clementine Schniedermann (Press Shots – Supplied)
If that sounds like your cup of tea, then you’ll be pleased to know that Westside Cowboy have released their debut album, It Goes On, to the world today (21 August).
And the reception from critics, arguably, couldn’t be better.
Prior to the release of their debut album, the band had released two EPs, including So Much Country ‘Till We Get There in January earlier this year, and had started to make a name for themselves with their popular debut single ‘I’ve Never Met Anyone I Thought I Could Really Love (Until I Met You)’ in 2024.
They went onto make even further waves when they supported equally-rising American rock band Geese on their UK and Irish tour back in March – with many fans calling it one of the best support and main act combinations in some time.
Three singles from their debut album were shared with the world ahead of its release – ‘Kick Stones (The Boys)’ came first, followed by ‘Pin Up Boys’ and ‘Dobro’.
So, it’s fair to say the anticipation for album was high… and if the reviews are anything to go by (which we think they are), it looks like the band has very much delivered what they set out to achieve.
Westside Cowboy’s debut album It Goes On is now available to stream, or you can purchase a physical copy in a range of formats from their website here.
Take a listen👇
Featured Image – Press Shot (Supplied)
News
UK set to be battered by storms as ‘unprecedented’ El Niño arrives this autumn
Emily Sergeant
The UK is being told to brace for a series of storms this autumn when the ‘unprecedented’ El Niño weather event arrives.
It’s already been a summer of extremes for the country, with multiple heatwaves over the past couple of months, but now it appears that autumn and winter are set to have some extremes of their own, as the Met Office is warning that this upcoming El Niño could be one of the most significant in recent memory.
El Niño is declared when sea temperatures in the tropical eastern Pacific rise 0.5°C above the long-term average, which therefore impacts global rainfall patterns and average temperatures.
The natural warming of sea temperatures is forecast to reach more than 3°C in the coming months, according to the Met Office, making this year’s weather event have the potential to be ‘the largest since the 19th century’.
The UK is set to be battered by storms as ‘unprecedented’ El Niño arrives this autumn / Credit: Johannes Plenio (via Unsplash)
El Niño will create a heightened risk of drought in the tropics, southern Africa, and north eastern Australia, but over in north western Europe – including the UK – it means we are likely to experience wetter and stormier conditions.
The UK, and of course Greater Manchester, is absolutely no stranger to a storm around this time of year, but forecasters say this could be an entirely different beast.
“We should be clear that this is an unprecedented event,” warned Professor Adam Scaife, who is the Head of Long Range Forecasting at the Met Office.
“I have never seen an El Nino signal this intense in our forecasts.”
Professor Scaife concluded: “A typical El Nino leads to an equatorial Pacific sea-surface temperature rise of between one to 2°C, with 2°C being a really big event. This implies that, if the forecast is accurate, and other forecast systems show similar extreme values, then 2026 will far exceed our recent experience of El Niño and its worldwide climate influences.’
Forecasters and officials, however, have warned that it could take months of sustained rainfall before rivers, reservoirs, and groundwaters are ‘completely replenished’ – which is when a drought can officially be declared as over.
It also warned drought conditions could persist into the new year as, despite El Niño, as current forecasts do not suggest this autumn will have the amount of rainfall needed to drive recovery.
Danny Jones -
16th December 2022 
