Comedian Joe Lycett contrasted his commitment to destroy £10,000 to David Beckham’s Qatar World Cup ambassadorship, describing it as “absolute b* from the beginning.”
Joe Lycett has disclosed that he did not shred £10,000 on Sunday during a live-streamed stunt but instead gave the money to an LGBTQ+ charity.
The comedian, who is known for his high-profile stunts, had vowed to destroy £10,000 of his own money if David Beckham failed to terminate his contentious multimillion-pound World Cup promotion deal with Qatar before Sunday’s opening match.
Beckham would not respond or recognize the ultimatum in any way, so Lycett pretended to carry out his threat by live streaming himself dropping £100,000 into a wood-chopper on the website BenderLikeBeckham.com.
Today, however, the 34-year-old admitted in a short social media video that the ploy was “an empty threat designed to get people talking” and that, like the football star’s controversial ambassadorship, it was “complete b* from the beginning.”
In jest, he called this his “final message to David Beckham” and referred to himself as “the p**** who shredded tonnes of cash during the cost of living crisis.”
He continued by explaining: “I have not told you the complete truth… Because, in reality, the currency that entered the shredder was real, but the currency that emerged was counterfeit.
“Never would I damage actual currency? Never would I be so irresponsible! The donation of £10,000 to LGBTQ+ organizations had already been made when I sent my initial tweet last week.”
He continued, addressing Beckham directly: “I never anticipated hearing from you. It was an empty threat intended to generate conversation.
In many ways, it mirrored your agreement with Qatar, David, in that it was a complete disaster from the outset.
In his earlier ultimatum, Lycett had said that the former England star’s “reputation as a gay legend” would also be destroyed if he did not terminate his association with Qatar.
To prove his point, he proceeded to tear the historic David Beckham edition of Attitude, which featured the first-ever Premier League footballer on the front of a homosexual magazine.
Lycett stated that he had requested Attitude for permission to destroy the document and that the publication “was more than delighted to comply.”
He then inserted the June 2002 issue of the magazine into a paper shredder built up on bricks, as opposed to the industrial wood chipper he had used for his previous trick, and watched Beckham’s face go into the machine.
Beckham reportedly signed a multimillion-pound contract with the FIFA World Cup hosts, which Lycett stated was for £10 million, but other sources put the amount as high as £150 million.
Since being selected as the host nation, Qatar has experienced an onslaught of criticism, with the country’s dismal human rights record and ban on same-sex couples proving particularly problematic.
Participation in same-sex sexual conduct is punishable by up to seven years in jail or the death sentence in Qatar.
Lycett concluded his video, which was taken in the same dismal room as his money-shredding Livestream the previous day, by stating that it had “all been rather a lot” and that he was “going to the gay village for a few drinks.”
As with his initial stunt, which divided opinion (some arguing that it was immoral to destroy money when so many were in financial crisis, and others noting that Lycett was bringing attention to important issues), the revelation that the money had not been shredded has once again sparked debate.
Some referred to the comedian’s acts as “attention seeking,” stating that his admission confirmed that it was all a publicity gimmick and that a celebrity of Beckham’s stature would not be troubled by Lycett’s antics.
Others, however, referred to him as an “icon” and a “legend,” with one fan proclaiming, “In a world filled with David Beckhams, be a Joe Lycett.”
One social media user, in response to a post that “understood it was a publicity gimmick,” she said. “A publicity stunt that got people talking about an important subject and resulted in the donation of £10,000 to charities.” Works for me.”
Someone else joked that Lycett should be a candidate for Sports Personality of the Year.
