A mystery neighbour who is trying to block Sir David and Victoria Beckham‘s plans for their luxury estate in the British countryside been revealed to actually live 14,000 kilometres away in Perth.

James Worthington has lodged a series of objections to planning applications at the Beckhams’ Cotswolds home, accusing the celebrity couple of attempting to turn the countryside into “Miami or Florida” with the “suburbia-style” features of their proposed renovations. 

While Worthington has presented himself as a concerned local resident, in one objection letter he admitted he had been “working away from the UK since 2019” and gave an address in the Western Australia capital, according to The Times.

The Beckhams have submitted several applications for renovations and additions to their estate in Great Tew, known as Maplewood Barn. Plans include LED lighting around a man-made lake.

In objections sent to the West Oxfordshire District Council in 2023 and 2026, Worthington said the Beckhams were damaging the village’s rural character and “drip-feeding planning applications instead of presenting a long-term vision for the estate”.

“What is proposed is more akin to Miami or Florida NOT GREAT TEW,” he said in one letter.

Great Tew has a population of about 160 residents, none of whom seem to know Worthington.

“Mr Worthington is a mystery to all of us. We have never heard of him and as far as we know he does not live in Great Tew,” John Mitchinson, chairman of Great Tew’s parish meetings, told The Times.

Eighty-year-old local resident Richard Davis, who has lived in the Great Tew for at least 60 years, said he had never heard of Worthington.

“This Mr Worthington character is definitely not a villager, I can guarantee that,” he was quoted as saying.

The Beckhams, who bought Maplewood Barn in 2016, have said the proposed lighting around the pond would enhance the setting while complying with ecological safeguards.

The couple also keep chickens and bees at the property.

The estate featured in the 2023 Beckham documentary. Photo: Netflix

In his objection to the LED lighting, Worthington said the plans would be more at home in the British seaside tourist resort of Blackpool than the countryside.

“Festooned lighting hanging along a ‘proposed bridge’ … spotlights, is this really Great Tew or have I mistaken this area for Blackpool?” he wrote.

“If the applicants want to live in suburbia, then why come to an area like Great Tew?”

He added that the lights could become “a source of annoyance to people” and “harmful to wildlife”, and could “undermine enjoyment of the countryside or the night sky”.

Worthington also criticised the Beckhams’ attempt to create what they described as a “classic English meadow scene” on the estate, claiming their design was anything but traditional English countryside, pointing to features such as a football pitch, outdoor pool and sauna. 

Maplewood Barn and its amenities featured heavily in the 2023 Netflix documentary Beckham.

The Beckhams previously prevailed in a separate planning dispute over a new driveway for their estate. It allows them to avoid sharing access routes with visitors heading to the neighbouring Soho Farmhouse. 

Great Tew is renowned for its 19th-century thatched cottages and status as a picturesque “chocolate box” Cotswold destination near Chipping Norton.