You can now bid on David Beckham's teenage car as part of our Give to GOSH charity auction
Purchased when he was 19, the football star's VW Golf will help raise money to look after some of the UK's most poorly children
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Your support makes all the difference.David Beckham is arguably one of the biggest footballing names on the planet, with a fleet of supercars to go with his enormous fame. But back in the 1990s he motored England’s roads in a classic VW Golf, in turquoise.
The car was purchased from the Ian Skelly dealership in Manchester in 1994, just three years after Beckham signed for Manchester United as a trainee. Now it has found itself on the list of lots that The Independent will be selling to the highest bidder, as part of our first of three online charity auctions for Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) this week.
The winning bidder will get a list of previous owners from the DVLA and the VW customer care report from August 1994, which both have Beckham’s name on. Beckham himself has signed a picture of the car to confirm his ownership.
Timothy Knatchbull, the car’s current owner said: “I was on my way to hospital for the birth of my daughter Willa when I saw it: a small piece in the Times saying David Beckham's first car was for sale. Next day, a proud dad and in awe of my wife Isabella who had just given birth for the fifth time, I looked again at that article. We bought the car.
“Everything I know about football I've been taught by my sons Milo and Ludo. They and their sisters couldn't believe their luck when David Beckham's first car arrived on our doorstep: cool, classic, sporty and in great shape. Rather like its first owner. Then I had to tell them that it was to be auctioned for the children at Great Ormond Street Hospital. They looked at me, their eyes sad. And then they switched.
"Yes they said, it's the right thing to do. Those children need this. It's all right Dad, we don't need David Beckham's car. Mind you, they are Chelsea fans.
“I'm so grateful to the Evening Standard and Independent. We hope readers are going to bid crazy money for a fantastic piece of sporting and automotive history.”
Another piece of celebrity memorabilia for sale in the upcoming auction comes in the shape of a giant cuddly bear which was wrestled by Benedict Cumberbatch on last week’s Graham Norton Show. The bear bears the signatures of not only Cumberbatch, but also Norton and Johnny Depp – whose connection to GOSH we reported on last week.
For those who want to experience a change from the daily routine, we will be offering a trip to watch Man United with The Independent’s very own Ian Herbert, or a stay at the beautiful Chateau Gütsch, a Swiss hotel owned by Independent proprietor Evgeny Lebedev and his father Alexander.
Bidding is now live, and will close at 9pm on Tuesday 8 December.
For more information about all the lots - and to make your bid - please visit www.givergy.com/charity/gosh
Where will your money go?
Your money will supply funding to four key areas:
1. Supporting the creation of a new specialist unit helping children with heart failure to stay well while they wait for a heart transplant.
2. Funding research programmes, which aim to find new cures and treatments for children with rare diseases.
3. Funding the patient and family support programme at the hospital, including a dedicated play team which designs activities for children to aid their treatment, recovery and understanding of their illness. It also funds a wide range of other support, all helping to make life as “normal” as possible for families while children are in hospital, often for weeks or months at a time.
4. Funding the Louis Dundas Centre for Children’s Palliative Care, for patients who have life-limiting or life-threatening conditions.
If you Give to GOSH, your donation will be matched by the Government, doubling its amount. To donate go to: http://ind.pn/1Mydxqt
To find out more about our appeal and why we're supporting GOSH go to: http://ind.pn/1MycZkr
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