(Image taken from his video demanding Beckham pulls out of ambassador role)
Comedian Joe Lycett live-streamed himself shredding ten grand this afternoon after football legend David Beckham – East London native and international superstar – failed to meet Lycett’s deadline for pulling out of his role as ambassador for the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
A week ago, Lycett tweeted a video demanding Beckham withhold support from Qatar’s World Cup because the country’s treatment of LGBTQ+ people goes against Beckham’s iconic status as a “gay icon” and his previous strong relationship with the LGBTQ+ community.
The destruction of the money – £10,000 of Lycett’s money vs the £10 million Beckham is reported to have gained from Qatar – was posted on the website benderslikebeckham and was live-streamed on Twitch. It started at 12 o’clock – timed to impact publicity at the start of the World Cup.
The live stream itself was a swift two-minute affair with Lycett throwing the piles of notes into an industrial shredder while wearing a large coat adorned with the colours of the pride flag.
(Video of Lycett shredding the money)
This stunt follows several others that Lycett has done over the years (including changing his name to Hugo Boss by deed poll in 2020 to contest the companies attempt to stop other brands from using the word Boss and pretending to storm off Steph’s Packed Lunch to protest against the drinks company Yop using white plastic bottles).
It seems this stunt is pretty controversial.
There are many members of the U.K. public saying the money could’ve and should’ve been donated to charity:
On the other hand, many are arguing shredding the money is worth the impact it will have:
Lycett’s initial video suggests he may be doing something illegal by destroying the banknotes. But, it seems not. Apparently, defacing a bankn ote can get you into trouble. But destroying them is okay!