Victoria Beckham Power and influence In what ways was Victoria Beckham powerful? it was reported that Beckham was the 52nd richest woman in Britain How much was she worth? ($225 million). How did she earn her wealth? Beckham Ventures, a company linked to the Victoria Beckham fashion business, was the best performing brand in the family's three businesses
Did she do any charity work?
Did Victoria Beckham do any charity work?
In 2007, it was reported that Beckham was the 52nd richest woman in Britain and the 19th richest person in Britain with husband David, with an estimated joint wealth of PS112 million ($225 million). According to The Guardian, Beckham Ventures, a company linked to the Victoria Beckham fashion business, was the best performing brand in the family's three businesses in 2012, coming close to matching turnover in a sister company that promotes the David Beckham brand. In 2010, Beckhams's charity work with Save the Children earned her a nomination for the Do Something With Style Award, an awards show, produced by VH1. She is a patron of the Elton John AIDS Foundation. Beckham promotes faux/synthetic furs. Her stand against the fur industry generated praise from animal rights organisations, including PETA. Beckham has stated that she is "supportive of its [PETA's] high-profile anti-fur campaigns," and pledged "never to work with fur in any of her own fashion collections". In February 2013, she was assessed as one of the 100 most powerful women in the UK in the fashion category by Woman's Hour on BBC Radio 4. In 2014, Beckham joined the Ban Bossy campaign as a spokesperson advocating leadership roles for girls. Beckham was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2017 New Year Honours for services to the fashion industry. She stated she "delighted and humbled for the recognition," which her husband also received in 2003. However, as recipients of honours are sworn to secrecy, and Beckham had announced her honour before the 2017 New Year Honours' official publication, she was criticised for the "betrayal of etiquette" by the Conservative MP Peter Bone. CANNOTANSWER
In 2010, Beckhams's charity work with Save the Children
Victoria Caroline Beckham  (; born 17 April 1974) is an English singer, songwriter, fashion designer and television personality. She rose to prominence in the 1990s as a member of the girl group the Spice Girls, in which she was nicknamed Posh Spice. With over 100 million records sold worldwide, the group became the best-selling female group of all time. After the Spice Girls split in 2001, Beckham was signed to Virgin Records, in which she released her self-titled debut solo album, which produced two UK Top 10 singles.

Beckham has starred in five official documentaries and reality shows, including Victoria's Secrets (2000), Being Victoria Beckham (2002), The Real Beckhams (2003), Victoria Beckham - A Mile In Their Shoes (2004), and Victoria Beckham: Coming to America (2007). She has since made a cameo appearance in an episode of Ugly Betty (2007), and been a guest judge on Project Runway (2008), Germany's Next Topmodel (2009), and American Idol (2010). 

Beckham has become an internationally recognised style icon and fashion designer. Following high-profile collaborations with other brands, she launched an eponymous label in 2008, and a lower-priced (diffusion) label in 2011. The Victoria Beckham label was named designer brand of the year in the UK in 2011; in 2012 the brand was assessed as the star performer in the Beckham family's business interests. Writing in the Daily Telegraph in 2011, Belinda White noted that the transition from WAG to fashion designer had been more successful than most had predicted, saying: "She has gathered a significant celebrity following and won over the scathing fashion pack who now clamour for a ticket to her bi-annual show at New York Fashion Week." Beckham was appointed an OBE in the 2017 New Year Honours for services to the fashion industry. She is married to David Beckham, and they have four children, including Brooklyn. As of May 2019, the couple's joint wealth is estimated at £355 million.

Early life
Beckham was born at the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow, Essex, United Kingdom, and raised in Goffs Oak, Hertfordshire. She is the eldest of three children of Jacqueline Doreen (née Cannon), a former insurance clerk and hairdresser, and Anthony William Adams, who worked as an electronics engineer. They founded an electronics wholesale business which allowed a comfortable upbringing for Victoria, her sister, Louise, and her brother, Christian Adams. Beckham's great-great-great-grandfather was German artist and revolutionary Carl Heinrich Pfänder and her great-great granduncle was Minnesota politician William Pfaender.

After watching the musical film Fame in 1980, she decided to pursue a musical career. Jacqueline and Anthony Adams enrolled her at Jason Theatre School. In 1991, Beckham entered Laine Theatre Arts in Epsom, Surrey and studied dance and modelling. Beckham attended St. Mary's High School in Cheshunt, where she was embarrassed by her family's wealth and often begged her father not to drop her off outside the school in their Rolls Royce. Eventually, she became a member of a band called Persuasion.

Music career

1994–2000: Spice Girls

Beckham auditioned for a March 1994 advertisement in The Stage which required girls who were "street smart, extrovert[ed], ambitious and able to sing and dance". In 1994, Beckham joined the all-female group, the Spice Girls. In the recordings before her marriage, she is credited with her maiden name as Victoria Adams. The group's first single was called "Wannabe" (1996), and she worked alongside Geri Halliwell, Emma Bunton, Melanie Brown and Melanie Chisholm. It went to number one in the United Kingdom and United States, and another 35 countries. It was followed by eight further number one singles from their albums Spice, Spiceworld and Forever. Each member of the group received a nickname from the media and Beckham was named "Posh Spice". The group is the best-selling female group of all time, selling over 80 million records worldwide. After the release of their third album, Forever, which charted at number two in the UK but was far less successful than their previous two albums, the Spice Girls stopped recording, concentrating on their solo careers in regards to their foreseeable future.

2000–2002: Victoria Beckham
On 14 August 2000, Beckham released her first solo single, "Out of Your Mind" in collaboration with Dane Bowers and Truesteppers. The week of release coincided with the release of "Groovejet (If This Ain't Love)" by Spiller featuring Sophie Ellis-Bextor, resulting in a chart battle dubbed 'Posh vs. Posher' by the tabloids. Before the single's release, on 8 July 2000, Beckham made her public solo debut at London's Hyde Park at a concert to raise money for the Prince's Trust charity. She sang "Out of Your Mind" to a 100,000-strong audience. Beckham then signed a recording contract with her group label Virgin Records. Her next single as a solo artist, "Not Such An Innocent Girl", was released on 17 September 2001. Again, she faced competition in another hugely hyped chart battle, this time with Kylie Minogue's single "Can't Get You Out of My Head". Despite a huge promotional campaign, Beckham was outsold eight to one, and her single debuted at number 6. Beckham's eponymous debut album, which was released on 1 October 2001, reached Number 10 in the UK album chart. The album cost a reputed £5 million to produce and it sold a modest 50,000 copies.

The second and final single to be released from the album was "A Mind of Its Own" on 11 February 2002. The single reached number 6 in the UK and sold 56,500 copies. Rumours soon spread that Beckham was to be dropped by her label for not charting in the Top Three. These were strongly refuted at the time. Beckham commented "You know what newspapers are like, they just like to put all the negative stuff in, but as far as I'm concerned and the record company is concerned it is all great." A third single, "I Wish", was promoted but never materialised. The single version was a remix featuring Robbie Craig, and was performed on TV on Friday Night's All Wright. Following the announcement of Beckham's second pregnancy, the single was shelved. Beckham was reportedly dropped by Virgin Records along with fellow Spice Girls Emma Bunton and Melanie B,; but a statement from her publicist denied reports, stating: "No-one has been dropped. The Virgin deal has come to a natural end and both parties have decided not to continue."

2002–2004: Unreleased albums and final solo releases
In 2002, Beckham signed a contract with Telstar Records and 19 Management worth £1.5 million. In 2003, she began recording an electropop-influenced album, Open Your Eyes and chose "Let Your Head Go" as first single. When the album was finalized, Beckham was disappointed with the result and decided to return to the studio to record a new material. She wanted a more urban sound and worked with the producer Damon Dash to work on the R&B and hip hop influenced album Come Together. When Dash was first asked why he recorded with Beckham, he stated: "Because I see how much she gets photographed over here." A Dash-produced track "It's That Simple" featuring M.O.P. premiered on radio stations in July 2003 as promotional single, generating mixed reviews. Beckham's first single with Telstar, the  double A-side "Let Your Head Go" / "This Groove", was released in the UK on 29 December 2003, following heavy promotion and many TV appearances across the Christmas period with the video being directed by Andy Hylton. The single charted at number three in the UK.

The double A-side was a thermometer to Beckham – if "Let Your Head Go" was more successful, she would release the electropop-inspired album Open Your Eyes, but if "This Groove" was better rated, she would release the R&B album Come Together. Outside of the UK, Damon Dash had plans for her in the US, including a potential release of "This Groove", and believed that Beckham would be successful because R&B was up in the world and her music style was similar to Jennifer Lopez. With the financial problems of the record company, combined with a rumoured fall-out between Dash and Fuller and the UK media massacring Beckham's solo career, the release of any album was postponed. Beckham's final plan at a solo career was the announcement of a new single, "My Love Is for Real", slated for a Summer 2004 release. But in April 2004, Telstar announced bankruptcy and Beckham gave up music to focus on her fashion career.

2007–2012: Return of the Spice Girls

In 2007, the Spice Girls reformed and announced plans to embark upon a reunion tour, from which they were said to have earned £10 million each (approximately $20 million). Beckham had previously stated that she and her former Spice colleagues were enjoying their solo careers in various fields, saying "We're all still doing our own thing." Their Greatest Hits album was released in early November 2007 and the tour began on 2 December 2007. At its advent, Beckham said "I wanted my children to see that Mummy was a pop star. It was the last opportunity for them to stand in a crowd full of people screaming for the Spice Girls." When Beckham had her hair coloured brown for the tour, she stated that her sons immediately reacted by saying "Oh my goodness, it's Posh Spice. She's back." She was the only member of the group not to sing a solo song on the tour, instead posing in the style of a fashion show on a makeshift catwalk, whereas the others each performed a number from their solo careers.

Film-maker Bob Smeaton directed an official film of the tour titled Spice Girls: Giving You Everything, which was first aired on Fox8 in Australia. It later aired in the UK on 31 December 2007 on BBC One. As well as their sell-out tour, the Spice Girls were contracted to appear in Tesco advertisements, for which they were paid £1 million each.

In October 2009, reports suggested that the Spice Girls were to star in a reality show in which they would cast female actors to play their roles in a musical. The following year, Judy Craymer teamed up with the Spice Girls and Simon Fuller to start developing a Spice Girls musical titled Viva Forever!. On 26 June 2012, all five Spice Girls were in attendance at a press conference in London to promote the launch of Viva Forever! The musical opened at the West End's Piccadilly Theatre on 11 December 2012. On 12 August 2012, after much speculation, Beckham and the Spice Girls performed a medley of "Wannabe" and "Spice Up Your Life" at the 2012 Summer Olympics closing ceremony, reuniting solely for the event. Their performance was the most tweeted moment of Olympics closing ceremony with over 116,000 tweets on Twitter per minute.

The band reunited again for a 2019 tour, however Beckham opted not to participate in the reunion choosing to focus on her fashion label instead. When the American television presenter Ellen DeGeneres asked her why she chose not to join with the other Spice Girls for the reunion tour, she said "It just didn't feel like the right thing to do. [But] I'll always be Posh Spice, always."

Fashion 

Beckham made a guest appearance on the catwalk for Maria Grachvogel on 17 February 2000, marking her debut as a model at London Fashion Week. Beckham also acted as a British ambassador for Dolce and Gabbana and was briefly the face of Rocawear in 2003. Beckham designed a limited-edition fashion line for Rock & Republic called VB Rocks in 2004, consisting mainly of jeans for the high end of the market, retailing at approximately $300 in the US.

On 16 January 2006, Beckham walked the runway for Roberto Cavalli at Milan Fashion Week, and was for a period exclusively dressed by him for red-carpet and social events. For the March 2006 issue of Harper's Bazaar, Beckham acted as fashion editor when she styled her close friend, Katie Holmes, for a fashion shoot. She has admitted to a personal love of sunglasses, saying "I'm quite obsessed with sunglasses. I collect vintage Guccis and Carreras – they can make virtually any outfit look cool." After Beckham's departure from Rock & Republic, in September 2006, she furthered her fashion ventures by launching her own denim label, dvb Style. Beckham then launched a new official website, dvbstyle.com to promote her fashion work.

On 14 June 2007, Beckham launched dvb Denim collection in New York at Saks Fifth Avenue, along with unveiling her eyewear range in the United States for the first time. In the same month, Beckham made her first appearance at London's annual Graduate Fashion Week as a judge alongside Glenda Bailey (editor-in-chief of Harper's Bazaar) and Lanvin's Alber Elbaz, to choose the winner of the River Island Gold Award, worth £20,000. In August 2007, Intimately Beckham perfume was launched into US stores, one of more than 20 perfumes she and David Beckham have introduced over the years. In September 2007 her cosmetics line V-Sculpt was launched in Tokyo. In a 2007 appearance at an LA Galaxy press conference, Beckham is credited with having popularised Roland Mouret's 'moon dress' and his brand, and Beckham was also the face of Marc Jacobs for his Spring 2008 collection.

Beckham has graced countless fashion magazine covers during her career, including I-D in 2004 and W in 2007. Her first Vogue appearance was the April 2008 British edition. This was followed by Vogue India, Vogue Paris as well as the German, Russian, Australian, Turkish, Taiwanese, Chinese and Spanish editions. Beckham has also graced various international editions of Harper's Bazaar and Elle.

On 17 July 2018, Victoria's collection of her Reebok collaboration was launched.

Launch of fashion label
Beckham's eponymous label was launched in September 2008 in a low-key presentation. By 2011, it had grown into a fixture of New York Fashion Week and a lower-priced Victoria by Victoria Beckham label was introduced. In the first quarter of 2011–12, it was predicted to generate annual sales of more than £60 million. Known initially for its dresses, the range has expanded into separates and luxury handbags selling at up to £18,000. Alongside the main fashion line and diffusion range, the Victoria Beckham brand still includes separate denim, eyewear and fragrance lines. In November 2011, Victoria Beckham won Designer Brand of the Year at the British Fashion Awards.

In September 2012, Victoria Beckham was the most talked about designer on Twitter during New York Fashion Week, also acquiring 57,000 new followers during the shows according to research by The Whispr Group.

Writing in The Independent in February 2014, Alexander Fury described how Victoria Beckham had made the transition from novelty to respected designer, citing her recent guest editorship of French Vogue and forthcoming participation in a panel discussion with the dean of Parsons design school in New York. The article concluded that the brand's sales were down to the appeal of the designs themselves, not the celebrity association.

In 2017, Beckham's new collection for Target is including a wide range of sizes from XS to 3X for women. Beckham is also offering a new line for children's wear.

In 2018 the collection was presented at London Fashion Week instead of at New York Fashion Week as normal.

In 2019, a spokesperson for the brand confirmed that the line would remain fur-free, and announced that as of the autumn/winter collection, it would also be free of any exotic skins.

Business difficulties 

Despite her high social profile, her fashion brand has not been a business success. In November 2019, the BBC reported that "Victoria Beckham's fashion business has posted another annual loss as demand for the former Spice Girl's high end clothes "plateaued". Victoria Beckham Limited, which has not made a profit since it launched in 2008, reported a loss of £12.3m for 2018. Sales slipped 16% to £35m, amid weaker wholesale demand. Chairman Ralph Toledano said sales of clothing and accessories had levelled off after years of growth. "The performance was in line with expectations, so we were not surprised. Our goal is to reach profitability as soon as possible," he told trade journal Business of Fashion. Mrs Beckham launched her label in 2008 with a collection of luxury dresses, and now sells fashion and accessories in more than 400 stores around the world."

Victoria Beckham Beauty 

In September 2019, Victoria launched a Beauty brand named "Victoria Beckham Beauty". Victoria envisions it as, "We seek out brands that both fuel and sustain us. This is the heart of #VictoriaBeckhamBeauty. A brand created by two women who are as interested in the best beauty products as they are in wellness solutions for themselves, their friends and families and the world they live in. We aim high and will continue to chase the best for ourselves and our community." Along with co-founder Sarah Creal, She showcased the brand at the London Fashion Week. Secondary packaging of the makeup is made from 100% post-consumer waste, while shipping materials are either recyclable or biodegradable. Victoria mentions it to be “active and effective, but clean and kind.”

First installment of Victoria Beckham Beauty is centered around eye makeup which includes "Satin Kajal Liner" and it comes in three shades (Black, Bronze and Bordeaux). "Lid Lustre" crystal-infused eye shadow in four shades. Four "Smoky Eye Brick", each containing four different eye shadow shades (Onyx, Blonde, Min and Midnight) within a different color palette.

In October 2019, Victoria Beckham has branched out into lip products with her "Your Perfect Pout" lip kit. Includes Bitten Lip Tint in Bisou and six vitamin E-infused, waterproof Lip Definer pencils in a variety of nude hues to suit a range of skin tones. The six nude hues include No. 01 (a pale peach); No. 02 (a neutral beige brown); No. 03 (a pink-y mauve); No. 04 (a rosy brown); No. 05 (a rich caramel); and No. 06 (a deep chestnut).

Television

Beckham has shot five official documentaries. The first, dated 11 January 2000, was called Victoria's Secrets, a programme only shown in the UK on Channel 4. It involved Beckham being followed by cameras while also discussing and interviewing other British celebrities, such as Elton John.
The second, Being Victoria Beckham, was broadcast in March 2002 and saw Beckham discussing her career as a solo artist with the release of her first album, and also showed her at various photo shoots and recording sessions. The documentary attracted a strong audience of 8.83 million, coming top in its timeslot. One critic described her as "so clearly level-headed, happy with her not inconsiderable lot and seemingly unfazed by the madly intrusive nature of her monumentally ridiculous fame". The third, The Real Beckhams, aired on 24 December 2003 on ITV1 and focused on the Beckhams' move to Madrid from London after David Beckham was signed to Real Madrid. In those years she suffered a jealousy attack and had a fight  in a gym with Ana Obregón because her husband David and Ana had been sending phone messages. It also featured Victoria Beckham re-launching her solo career and showed her mocking the tabloid stories she reads in the paper every day. The special received an audience of 6.10 million viewers and was later released on DVD on 2 February 2004.

The fourth was titled Full Length & Fabulous: The Beckhams' 2006 World Cup Party, and followed Victoria and David Beckham organising and making preparations to host a 2006 World Cup Party at a marquee in the grounds of their mansion in Hertfordshire, which aimed to raise money for their charity. Two tickets to attend the ball were auctioned on-line for charity, and sold for £103,000. The documentary aired on 28 May 2006 and showed the event itself, where the menu was designed especially by friend and chef Gordon Ramsay and the charity auction was hosted by Graham Norton. Ramsay catered for 600 guests, with the aid of 40 chefs and 100 waiting staff. The ITV documentary attracted an average of 7.56 million viewers.

To document Victoria Beckham's preparations for her family's move to the US, she signed a deal with NBC for six episodes of a half-hour unscripted reality TV series. Despite original plans for six episodes, the show was cut to a one-hour special only as there "just wasn't enough (material) for a series." The show, called Victoria Beckham: Coming to America, aired on 16 July 2007 in the US and Canada. It was heavily scrutinised by the American media and critics, with The New York Post describing it as "an orgy of self-indulgence" and also describing Beckham as "vapid and condescending". The programme was the third-most-watched programme in its time-slot and received viewing figures of 4.9 million in the US, beaten by a repeat of Wife Swap and two sitcoms. The programme aired in Britain on 17 July 2007 on ITV with 3.84 million viewers tuning in. The programme was produced by Simon Fuller who managed her and the Spice Girls on their come-back tour.

In July 2007, it was announced that Beckham would shortly begin filming a cameo appearance as herself in an episode of the second season of ABC's TV series Ugly Betty. The episode, "A Nice Day for a Posh Wedding", aired on 9 November 2007 in the United States and on 23 November in the United Kingdom. Despite her forays into television, Beckham has denied plans to embark upon a Hollywood movie career. In February 2008, it was revealed that Beckham would be the guest judge for the finale of fourth season of Project Runway, which aired on 5 March 2008 in the US.

It was reported in October 2007 that Beckham had turned down the opportunity to appear in Sex and the City: The Movie. She stated in an interview: "[I was] asked to be in the Sex and the City film, which I would have loved to have done, but because I am in full-on Spice Girls rehearsal mode, unfortunately, I can't do it."

Books
On 13 September 2001, Beckham released her first book, Learning to Fly. The title was taken from a line in a song from the musical Fame, which Beckham had enjoyed as a child. The verse that inspired the title was: "I'm gonna live forever, I'm gonna learn how to fly". The autobiography documents her childhood, time during the Spice Girls, her marriage and family life, as well as her career at the time. She describes her eating disorder associated with the need to be slim. Learning to Fly became the third best-selling non-fiction title of 2001 and the total UK sales stand at more than 500,000 copies. When the book was first released, it went to Number 1 in the book charts after four weeks of release, relegating Robbie Williams' book to second place. A high-profile guest appearance on Parkinson, watched by nine million people, helped to promote the book. Hello!, Daily Mail and The Mail on Sunday joined to buy the rights to preview and serialise the book before its publication. The figure paid was thought to be near £1 million.

Beckham was quoted by a Spanish journalist in 2005 as saying: "I've never read a book in my life". She later explained this was a mistranslation from the original Spanish in which the interview was printed, saying she actually stated that she never had time to finish reading a book because she was always too busy looking after her children.

Beckham's second book, a fashion advice guide titled That Extra Half an Inch: Hair, Heels and Everything in Between, was published on 27 October 2006. That Extra Half an Inch: Hair, Heels and Everything in Between includes tips from Beckham on fashion, style and beauty, and also contains photography by Mario Testino, Annie Leibovitz and Steven Meisel. The book became another best-seller, and has sold 400,000 copies in Britain alone since it was published in hardcover. The rights have since been sold to the United States, the Netherlands, Japan, Portugal, Lithuania, Russia, and most recently China.

Power and influence
In 2007, it was reported that Beckham was the 52nd richest woman in Britain and the 19th richest person in Britain with husband David, with an estimated joint wealth of £112 million ($225 million). According to The Guardian, Beckham Ventures, a company linked to the Victoria Beckham fashion business, was the best performing brand in the family's three businesses in 2012, coming close to matching turnover in a sister company that promotes the David Beckham brand.

In 2010, Beckhams's charity work with Save the Children earned her a nomination for the Do Something With Style Award, an awards show, produced by VH1. She is a patron of the Elton John AIDS Foundation. Beckham promotes faux/synthetic furs. Her stand against the fur industry generated praise from animal rights organisations, including PETA. Beckham has stated that she is "supportive of its [PETA's] high-profile anti-fur campaigns," and pledged "never to work with fur in any of her own fashion collections". In February 2013, she was assessed as one of the 100 most powerful women in the UK in the fashion category by Woman's Hour on BBC Radio 4.

In 2014, Beckham joined the Ban Bossy campaign as a spokesperson advocating leadership roles for girls.

Beckham was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2017 New Year Honours for services to the fashion industry. She stated she was "delighted and humbled for the recognition," which her husband also received in 2003. However, as recipients of honours are sworn to secrecy, and Beckham had announced her honour before the 2017 New Year Honours' official publication, she was criticised for the "betrayal of etiquette" by the Conservative MP Peter Bone.

Personal life

Beckham began a relationship with Corey Haim in 1995, which ended on mutual terms.

In early 1997, she started dating footballer David Beckham after they met at a charity football match; prior to this he had watched her music videos and commented to teammates that he was attracted to her, but had been overcome with shyness when they were first introduced. A few months earlier, Victoria had also expressed a wish to meet David during a Spice Girls football photo session (by chance, she wore the kit of his club Manchester United for the feature as the group's manager was a supporter). Of their initial meeting, she said, "I didn't really know who he was. I was never into football." The couple announced their engagement in 1998 and were dubbed "Posh and Becks" by the media.

She collects handbags, and owns over 100 Birkin bags, made by Hermès, which are widely considered the most valuable and sought-after, including a £100,000 shocking pink one, and worth a total of more than £1.5 million.

Marriage
On 4 July 1999 they were married by the Bishop of Cork, Paul Colton, at Luttrellstown Castle, Ireland. The wedding attracted much media coverage. Beckham's teammate, Gary Neville, was the best man, and the couple's four-month-old son Brooklyn was the ring bearer. Most of the media were kept away from the ceremony as an exclusive deal with OK! magazine had been arranged, but photographs were released showing the Beckhams sitting on golden thrones. Victoria wore a diamond coronet created for her by jewellery designer Slim Barrett. A total of 437 staff were employed for the wedding reception, which was estimated to have cost £500,000 (US$823,650).

The couple bought what became their most famous home for £2.5 million in 1999; the property, which is set in  of land, was given a £3 million renovation and was subsequently dubbed Beckingham Palace by the media.

Children
Victoria and David Beckham have four children: son Brooklyn Joseph (born 4 March 1999), son Romeo James (born 1 September 2002), son Cruz David (born 20 February 2005), and daughter Harper Seven (born 10 July 2011). Elton John and David Furnish are reportedly the godparents of Brooklyn and another son, and their godmother is Elizabeth Hurley.

Alleged kidnap and death threats
In January 2000, a tip-off to Scotland Yard detectives exposed a plot to kidnap Victoria and Brooklyn Beckham and hold them at a house in Hampstead, London. The family was then moved to a secret location, but no arrests were made. In March of that year, she received a death threat prior to performing at the Brit Awards with the Spice Girls, and at the show's rehearsal, a red laser light appeared on her chest and she was rushed off stage. After a fire door was found to be lodged open, it was thought that there had been an assassin there, and Beckham later revealed that she was terrified by the experience. In November 2002, five people were arrested after another plot for her kidnap was infiltrated by a tabloid newspaper. All charges were dropped after a witness was deemed unreliable.

Filmography

Discography

 Victoria Beckham (2001)

See also
 Girl power

References

External links 

 
 
 

 
1974 births
Living people
20th-century English women singers
20th-century English singers
21st-century British businesspeople
21st-century British businesswomen
21st-century English women singers
21st-century English singers
English bloggers
English businesspeople in fashion
English dance musicians
English expatriates in the United States
English fashion designers
English women pop singers
English people of German descent
English women singer-songwriters
English women in business
Association footballers' wives and girlfriends
Handbag collectors
Musicians from Hertfordshire
Officers of the Order of the British Empire
People from Goffs Oak
Spice Girls members
British women bloggers
British cosmetics businesspeople
19 Recordings artists
Telstar Records artists
Virgin Records artists
Dance-pop musicians
British women fashion designers
British monarchists
Charity Standish is a fictional character on NBC/DirecTV soap opera Passions. She was portrayed by Molly Stanton from July 14, 1999 to July 22, 2004, on contract and then by Kristina Sisco from November 15, 2006 to February 8, 2007 on recurring status. During 2006–2007, a woman named Carla impersonated Charity. Out of costume, Carla was portrayed by Tess Alexandra Parker, while Sisco actually portrayed the costumed Carla in most of her appearances as "Charity". Born to Faith Standish and an unknown man, Charity has the power to channel the forces of goodness. She was not aware of these powers for the first fifteen years of her life, leading a very sheltered life.

Storylines

Charity was born to an unknown man and Faith Standish, very little is known about her life prior to the beginning of the series. Her mother, Faith, loved her dearly and had fear of evil forces trying to harm her daughter. Charity had powers of goodness which would come into full fruition once she made love to her true love Miguel Lopez-Fitzgerald. For this reason Charity never had the chance to go to school and meet friends since her mother feared for the life of her daughter. Faith was the only one who knew this secret. Charity met her lover Miguel at a carnival festival held by Grace Bennett, Faith's twin sister. Faith over the years tried to find her twin sister Grace but because of the evil witch Tabitha Lenox causing obstruction she couldn't be able to do so. When, at the carnival, they entered a tent where Tabitha was telling fortunes. When they entered, everything started spinning in mid air but stopped when Faith and Charity left. After the carnival festival, Charity and Faith went home and whilst home, Tabitha tricked her and tried to drag her through the sink into her house but failed. At one stage, Grace and Faith were close to meeting when they were at the same restaurant, but didn't when Tabitha stopped them. After that, Tabitha also tried to disguise her voice as a small child and make Charity fall into the sea but failed when saved by Miguel. When Charity was leaving harmony, Tabitha disguised herself as a taxi driver and tried to get Charity alone, but because of the little angel girl giving a sign to priest church Father Lonigan Miguel came and took Charity home. Shortly afterwards, when Faith was on internet she was chatting to her twin sister Grace. When she was about to show the evil that tried to destroy Grace they were interrupted by Tabitha who changed the picture. When Tabitha found out that Faith and Grace were about meet Tabitha tried to put a stop to it.

Tabitha also disguised herself as a dog and went after Faith. She and Faith had a scuffle which accidentally created a fire. Faith died in the fire but Charity was saved by her lover Miguel. This incident also caused Tabitha to loose her powers to the dark side since she failed to destroy Charity. After that she moved in with Grace and her family. She barely remembers her life before the fire. Charity moving in angered charity's cousin Kay Bennett. She was also in love with Miguel and wanted him. Kay resented Charity since she came in the way of her and Miguel. While living with Grace, Tabitha time after time tried to get rid of charity. She tried killing her by putting her on railway track but was saved by Miguel. On Halloween, she conjured up demons from a fire and tried to destroy Grace and Charity but failed when Father Lonigan came and threw holy water destroying the demons. When Charity arrived at Tabitha's house, she tried to kill her through a fire poker, but failed. She tried burning her at the stake when Charity was doing a school play about witches but was saved by the angel girl and Miguel.

Tabitha also dressed up as Santa and tried electrocuting Charity and Miguel by lighting a Christmas tree but failed. On New Year's Eve she tried to kill Charity by chopping her head off but failed once again. While at New Year's Eve party the little angel girl came to her telling Tabitha that charity might be brought to the dark side due to the death of someone close. This incited Tabitha to try to find a way to make Charity become evil.

Tabitha found out through an ancient tome that Charity can be brought over to evil if she kills the person she loves, Miguel. Tabitha tried to make Charity kill Miguel by giving them a patty. She poisoned the patty that Charity was going to give Miguel but Timmy Lenox (Tabitha's brought to life doll) swapped the patty making Tabitha eat the patty.

Tabitha melted but through the help of Timmy, Dr Bombay and an old enemy of Tabitha, Matilda Matthews, she came back to life. Again she tried to make Charity kill Miguel by making Charity give Miguel poison tea but failed when Charity saw her tea leaves and screamed making Miguel spill his tea. Kay trying to find a way, also to get rid of charity, found out that when Charity was near a bird statue she was freaking out by having visions. Kay found out that Tabitha possessed the bird statue.

Kay found the bird statue and put it near Charity and it made her have visions she couldn't explain. She was eventually put in a psych ward. Tabitha found out about what Kay was doing and went to the hospital. Tabitha then put an act of being crazy and ended up in the psych ward. While being next to the room where Charity was she was overhearing everything. When Charity's situation wasn't getting better, Tabitha overheard the doctor's administrating a drug which if given will make anyone do what another person wants them to do. Tabitha used the opportunity and told Charity to kill Miguel. Simone Russell, Kay's best friend, knew about her schemes and didn't want Charity to suffer anymore.

She removed the bird statue which stopped Charity's visions. Charity was then released from the hospital while at home still under the drug she tried to kill Miguel but however was stopped. Tabitha's scheme failed once again. Tabitha made a very narrow escape from the hospital. While at home Charity had continuous visions of Miguel being dead. She broke up with him for a while fearing his life. Miguel decided to go on a ski trip. Charity sensed danger for Miguel. Tabitha however found out and tried to make Charity kill Miguel by making her send Miguel into a dangerous place in the ski trip.

She started an avalanche which almost killed Miguel and Charity. All survived and Tabitha's scheme failed. While scheme after scheme failed for Tabitha, the dark forces in her basement were becoming angry at her failure. Charity, while sleepwalking, approached the dark forces. They also tried to kill Charity but failed. Harmony high prom was coming up and Tabitha needed to find a way for charity to become evil. Tabitha found a movie called Carrie and knew what to do. She told Timmy to take the movie and hide it under Kay's bed. Tabitha knew if Kay watched the movie she'd know what to do. Kay got an idea from the movie and decided on prom night to spill fish guts on her.

Tabitha however created an evil pendant which would possess Charity and make her use her powers for evil and kill Miguel. Tabitha gave the pendant to Charity and on the night of the prom Kay spilled fish guts on Charity triggering her powers and making Charity evil. The pendant made her use her powers resulting in the prom boat being destroyed and everyone almost drowning. After the night of the prom Charity, possessed by the pendant, tried to kill Miguel but failed.

She cooked quiche with poison mushrooms but Grace gave the wrong mushroom to Miguel resulting in Tabitha eating poison mushroom but survived. Evil Charity told Timmy and Tabitha to remove all the brakes of Miguel's bike and make the bike loose so Miguel would die. This plan failed however, since Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald took the bike almost killing her. Evil Charity planted snakes and tried to kill Miguel by trapping him in the shed. But Miguel escaped and evil Charity failed. Miguel was planning their high school trip and decided to take everyone to the woods.

Tabitha wanted to stop them but failed. When in the woods Charity went into a trance and tried to burn Tabitha at the stake but was interrupted. Tabitha then made Charity wear the pendant and then told evil Charity to go near the mining shaft and try and push Miguel into it. Miguel was pushed in it. Evil Charity also pushed Kay inside the shaft. Tabitha angry at evil Charity pushed her inside. While inside Kay was trying to pull Miguel away as she was doing so Miguel's foot kicked a box. The box had extreme powers of goodness that could destroy Tabitha and the evil in Charity. While the box was opened, Saint Michael an angel tried to kill Tabitha but failed when Timmy closed the box. Evil Charity tried to kill Miguel while in the mine shaft but failed continuously.

While in the mining shaft Kay and Miguel found the evil witch Hecuba's cave. Hecuba was an evil witch trapped in a cave by Tabitha. While leaving the cave Kay took a diamond not knowing it could break the curse. While in the shaft Miguel and Kay found the box used it and destroyed the pendant on Charity. Tabitha's scheme to destroy Charity once again failed. Kay, still hating Charity for taking Miguel away from her, was still planning on how to get Charity away from Miguel. Kay then made a deal with the evil witch Hecuba and sold her soul. At one stage Kay disguised herself, as Charity when Hecuba cast a spell making her look like Charity, to make love to Miguel but was interrupted when the real Charity showed up. When the real Charity showed up they were both in bed together.

They were about to make love but Tabitha and Timmy stopped them since they knew that if they made love Charity would come into her full powers. Shortly before Christmas Hecuba came and took Kay's soul. Kay now had no choice but to do everything that Hecuba told her. She got a strand of Charity's hair and nail clippings only to cause Hecuba to make ravens attack the Bennett house. She then afterwards made blood drip from the walls and then tried trap Charity in hell. At first Hecuba failed in putting Charity in hell due to Miguel interfering.

But however she succeeded the second time when Miguel left Charity and Kay alone. At first Kay did not tell anyone where Charity was due to Hecuba threatening not to give her soul back however when Hecuba tried to kill Miguel, Kay realized that Hecuba only used her to destroy Charity. After that Kay then decided to tell everyone that Charity was in hell.

After Miguel found out about her he jumped into hell to rescue her. Father Lonigan, Reese and everyone else tried to find a way to save them but were constantly stopped by Hecuba. They threw a ladder of Lucifer into hell but Miguel got knocked out and Hecuba cut the rope trapping Charity in hell. Miguel then tried to rescue Charity by trying to destroy Hecuba but failed when they closed the box not fully destroying Hecuba. This made Tabitha and Timmy trick Hecuba and trap her in a bottle.

Miguel, still trying to think of a way jumped into hell once again. Kay also jumped in only for all of them to realize that they were being dragged to the 10th level of hell. Timmy however having a big crush on Charity wanted to save Charity when evil was starting to destroy the Bennett house. He found out from Tabitha that a demons claw could save Charity.

The little angel girl seeing Timmy's good nature approached him telling him to use it. Timmy then used it resulting in the demons in hell being destroyed and the Bennett house getting sucked in to hell. Tabitha, Timmy, Charity, Miguel and Kay all survived. Hecuba's scheme to get rid of Charity failed just like Tabitha's.

With Grace and Sam's house in ruins, Charity, Grace and Jessica stayed over at Tabitha's house and Kay stayed with Miguel.  Charity afterwards was trying to remember what happened and she started to. She also started feeling that Kay didn't have a soul. She prayed for Kay's soul to return and Kay got her soul back when Timmy heard Charity's prayer. Shortly afterwards Kay decided she wanted to be good. Miguel was planning their high school trip and came across warlock island. As they went, Tabitha and Timmy followed them escaping from an axe murderer named Norma who wanted to kill them. After entering warlock island Tabitha feared for her life that the warlocks would want her since she trapped them on the island.

While there Charity had a vision that the boat that Luis and Sheridan were on was about to explode and that Theresa was about to do something that she would later regret. They couldn't tell them since the boat they had was destroyed by Norma who tried to kill Tabitha and Timmy.  Also while there, the warlocks called Charity to tell her about Tabitha she at first was confused but then thought it was a dream. Miguel, Kay, Simone and Reese went looking for her in the cave. When she was found the warlocks demanded that they wanted someone dead in order for them to come out of the cave. The warlocks took Tabitha, the one they wanted and then they came out only to realize that a freaky hurricane had started. Miguel, Kay, Reese and Simone were washed away by the heavy storm. Charity then saw a tree talking to her telling her to use her powers to save her drowning  friends. The tree also warned that she might loose Miguel if she does save them. She used her powers which not only saved her friends but all the Townsville folks of Harmony.

When returning from warlock island Charity tried to remember the deal she made. She and Grace started realizing that they might have special powers. They then said a prayer which resulted in the resurrection of Sheridan Crane who was dead from the boat explosion. Charity and the others then  heard bad news that Grace and Sam were not legally married. This angered Kay who reverted to her former self. Tabitha knowing this used it to her advantage and then kept a book of spells which Kay found and used a spell to trap Charity in a block of ice. Kay then created a zombie Charity who was in fact a succubus sent from the dark forces in Tabitha's basement.

The dark forces also gave zombie Charity Tabitha's powers. After zombie Charity was created she started to do what Kay told her to do. At times, Charity would, at Kay's telling, flirt with other boys, try and lose her temper and always find a way to hurt Miguel. After a while Kay started to realize that zombie Charity had an agenda of her own and that she wanted to do what she wanted to do.

Kay, at one point, found out from Reese that Someone-after sleeping with a succubus- dies. Kay started to discover that zombie Charity wanted Miguel dead. Kay started regretting what she did and wanted to get rid of zombie Charity. Meanwhile, Tabitha's real life doll Timmy found out that the real Charity can be saved when a device called the Demon's horn is used. Timmy left in search for the demon's horn. Zombie Charity then saw Timmy as a threat and proceeded to try and get rid of him.

Meanwhile, Kay time after time failed in getting rid of zombie Charity. She used the book of spells to try and destroy Zombie Charity but failed when Zombie Charity stopped Kay. She followed zombie Charity to Miguel's house where they were about to make love. She started a fire which burnt and destroyed the entire Lopez-Fitzgerald home. At another stage Kay prayed and asked the angels to destroy her but however Miguel came in and they disappeared. At Another stage they were at a grave yard and zombie Charity tried to make love and kill Miguel but Kay used holy water and stopped her. After Charity's 18 birthday they went to the hotel and stayed but Kay once again stopped them.

Zombie Charity also transformed herself into Julian Crane when Theresa tried to end her life convincing Theresa  she saw Julian in hell. She made Theresa make a deal to get Ethan. When Timmy escaped and ran away in search of the demon's horn, zombie Charity, at times, would send assassins to try and kill Timmy. She sent the bird of mordred to find out where Timmy was but before it could tell zombie Charity anything Tabitha killed it.

She discovered where Timmy was through a crystal ball. She cast the spell of beldacrusta which made animals appear. She however failed since Timmy escaped. She also sent a scarecrow and an iron man but Timmy was saved by Julian, who fled Harmony cause of everyone trying to kill him. She also sent a snake but this time however Timmy was saved by Tabitha.

Timmy then returned to Harmony. By that time zombie Charity stole the good essence of the real Charity and tried to use it but by the time she could zombie Charity started to realize that the real Charity was starting to thaw. Kay then used the essence making her look like Charity then seducing Miguel.

Meanwhile, zombie Charity ran over to the cave, where she was confronted by the real Charity. Timmy also started to use the Demon's horn. Zombie Charity and real Charity got into a scuffle and Timmy got struck by zombie Charity gravely injuring him. The real Charity woke up and used the horn destroying zombie Charity.

Timmy and Charity were rushed to the hospital. In the hospital doctors discovered Timmy was too gravely injured and couldn't make it, He died shortly after. Charity also died resulting in Tabitha getting her full powers. When she received her powers she realized that she signed a form that gave permission to donate Timmy's heart to Charity. At first, when learning this, she tried to put a stop to it but Timmy came and convinced Tabitha not to do so and Tabitha stopped, and Charity survived. After Charity survived, Tabitha's plans towards getting rid of Charity had subsided due to Timmy's heart being in Charity.

After that Charity and Miguel had plans to get married. On their wedding day tragedy struck when Kay found out she was pregnant with Miguel's baby. Charity was upset and called the wedding off. Charity and Miguel were finding it hard to get back together. During that time Kay and Grace were having fights due to Kay accusing her of taking Charity's side all the time.

Kay moved out moving in with Tabitha and working with the dark forces once again. Whilst Kay was living with Tabitha, she tried to use a love potion Tabitha gave her. She went to the cinema where she was with Charity, Miguel, Jessica and Reese. She mixed the love potion in the popcorn which she wanted to give to Miguel but however Reese ended up eating it resulting in Charity and Miguel getting back together and Reese breaking up with Jessica. Shortly afterwards when Sheridan was kidnapped by Beth Wallace's accomplice, Charlie, who was actually Alistair Crane in disguise, Charity had visions that Sheridan was kidnapped and tried to make Beth tell everyone but Beth denied it and no one believed Charity.

Few months later Kay's baby was born. When Kay's baby was born, Charity saw death coming to take the baby. Death told her that if she prays the baby will survive since she has powers of goodness. Charity was confused but eventually prayed and saved the baby's life. Death told Charity that if the baby survives she has to stay away from Miguel. But Charity continued being near Miguel. A Few months later Charity had another vision of Sheridan being drowned in water. She told everyone and when Luis went to save her Death came back to take Luis and Sheridan but Charity once again saved them. After that Death wanted to take Miguel's baby again. This time Charity stayed away from Miguel by flirting with other guys and nearly end up sleeping with Reese Durkee when Tabitha's Daughter Endora cast a spell on them.

Charity's behavior changed as a result of the spell. She began to lose her inhibitions by dancing in her underwear. But however despite all of it Charity still had feelings for Miguel. Then when Kay and Tabitha were unable to separate them, Endora created an evil Faith and made Charity go to Castletown where her house burnt down in 1999. After that Tabitha cast a spell that turned Kay into a rabid dog to attack Charity.

Kay, transformed into a dog, went after Charity trying to kill her, but the spirit of good Faith appeared and gave Miguel a sign where Charity was and Miguel took a spear and speared Kay resulting in Kay receiving an infection which left her unable to have more children. Miguel and Charity were still unable to break up. Charity had a suggestion of leaving town. Tabitha, hearing this, showed Charity all the evil brought to Harmony from the time she came. Charity seeing all the pain she caused decided to leave Harmony. Miguel went after her and left Harmony, but returned in March 2006, after ending his search for Charity.

In November 2006, Fox Crane, Kay's fiancé at the time, tried to contact her to bring her back to Harmony but failed. Miguel, however, phoned her and asked her to come back, but she refused saying that she suffered a great deal in Harmony and had found happiness elsewhere. Shortly after Fox failed to contact Charity, he resorted to hiring an out-of-work actress, disguising her as Charity, and bringing her to Harmony to try and break up Miguel and Kay.

Kay saw Charity and Miguel making love. When Tabitha heard this, she wondered why she and the dark forces weren't destroyed. She then found out that a fake Charity was wandering Harmony. The real Charity, however, returned in January after hearing about the death of her aunt Grace. After the funeral, Charity left Harmony again. The real Charity and Miguel never made love. If they did, their combined forces of good would destroy the all evil in Harmony, including Tabitha and Endora. When Jessica Bennett left her abusive husband Spike Lester, she went and stayed with Charity to have her baby. In the series finale, it was mentioned that she was staying in the Bahamas and was said to be living as a nun.

Supernatural Powers
All the women of the Standish family by blood have supernatural powers; out of all the standish descendants Charity Standish is seemingly the most powerful Standish descendant prophesied to be born with extreme powers of goodness. Some standish women have the power to see visions of the past, the present and the future, while others have an affinity for witchcraft, but none of the Standish descendants' powers are seemingly as potent as Charity's.

Charity's first experience with the supernatural came at the Harmony carnival when she went into the fortune telling tent. Upon returning to Castleton, Charity was rinsing her face when Tabitha reached into her magic bowl and tried to drag her through to Tabitha's living room, but luckily, Charity managed to escape. Charity's powers lay fairly dormant for some time, until Kay begin plotting against her, and bringing the bird statue near her. This prompted psychic visions for Charity, in which she saw Julian and Eve making love. Eve had her committed to the psychiatric ward, and Kay continued to bring the bird statue near her, keeping Charity's visions coming and keeping her locked up. After her release, Charity's powers were quiet for a long time; however, being possessed by a pendant, she used her powers for evil. She did occasionally get twinges that evil was after her (particularly when Kay was around) and saw Kay once in her true demon form, since Kay sold her soul to the evil witch Hecuba. She spent time burning in the fires of hell because of Kay and Hecuba, but escaped and survived. Also whilst on Warlock Island she had a vision of a boat, which Luis and Sheridan were in, that exploded. She also spent almost a year frozen in a block of ice, but eventually the ice melted, due to Timmy finding the demon's horn, which Charity then used to defeat the Zombie Charity that had taken her place. Before Sheridan was kidnapped Charity had visions that she was in trouble, and also sensed that Beth was somehow behind it, but she couldn't prove it. She also had visions of Sheridan being drowned in water which Beth had thrown her in. Charity has never come into her full powers, as they will only take effect when she makes love to her soulmate, Miguel Lopez-Fitzgerald. Charity's powers have primarily manifested themselves as premonitions, which at times come true.

Look Alikes
Charity was plagued by Tabitha and due to evil spells caused by her, Kay, and Hecuba at different points in time Charity's likeness was used by one or the other into creating a doppelgänger of herself. An entity created by Kay from the book of spells known as Zombie Charity plagued Harmony for several months in 2002 later revealing it was a succubus, and  later returning as a ghost. Kay even used Charity's essence to disguise herself as Charity in order to make love her boyfriend Miguel. At one point, Fox hired a lookalike to impersonate Charity as well using a mask, but the ruse eventually fell apart.

See also
 Bennett and Standish families

External links

American female characters in television
Fictional nuns
Fictional witches
Passions characters
Television characters introduced in 1999 Charity Dingle  (also Tate, Sharma and Macey) is a fictional character from the British television soap opera Emmerdale, played by Emma Atkins. Suranne Jones originally auditioned for the role of Charity prior to Atkins being cast in the role. The actress began filming her first scenes in February 2000, and she made her first screen appearance as Charity during the episode broadcast on 30 March 2000. Actress Mica Proctor played a young Charity in a flashback episode about the character's past, which aired on 29 May 2018.

The character has been involved in numerous high-profile storylines during her time on the show, such as her marriage to Chris Tate (Peter Amory), an affair with Chris's sister, Zoe Tate (Leah Bracknell), the arrival of her long-lost daughter Debbie Dingle (Charley Webb), her affair with Cain Dingle (Jeff Hordley), being framed by Chris for his death, giving birth to Noah Tate (Jack Downham) and her uncaring relationship and subsequent break up with Tom King (Ken Farrington), which led to her exit on 1 March 2005. Atkins returned to the role on 1 October 2009. During her second stint in Emmerdale, Charity's storylines focused on her relationship with Cain, their get-rich-quick schemes, and her job working with Jai Sharma (Chris Bisson), whom she later married and divorced.

Charity later married Declan Macey (Jason Merrells) and had a secret abortion, which led Declan to try to kill her. Atkins took maternity leave in February 2015, as Charity was sentenced to prison after confessing to her crimes. Atkins returned briefly from June to July and again in December that year, before making a permanent return in March 2016.

Charity's storylines since then have seen her give birth to Moses Dingle, begin a relationship with Vanessa Woodfield (Michelle Hardwick), to whom she later got engaged, and reveal that she was sexually abused by detective Mark Bails (Rocky Marshall) when she was a teenager, which led to the birth of their son Ryan Stocks (James Moore). More recent storylines have seen Charity split from Vanessa, become estranged from her family, and start a relationship with Mackenzie Boyd (Lawrence Robb).

For her portrayal of Charity, Atkins has received nominations for Best Actress at the British Soap Awards.

Storylines

2000–2005
Charity comes to Emmerdale for her cousin, Butch's (Paul Loughran) funeral. It emerges that she is working as a prostitute and there is a warrant out for her arrest. Charity stays with Zak Dingle (Steve Halliwell) and his wife Lisa (Jane Cox).

Charity begins dating Chris Tate (Peter Amory), which his sister, Zoe (Leah Bracknell), is unhappy about and offers her money to end it but Charity refuses. Zoe and Charity then have an affair but Charity ends it when Zoe gets too possessive. Chris proposes marriage and Charity accepts so Zoe records Charity taking about their affair and blackmails her to sign a prenuptial agreement. However, Charity tells Chris about her affair and Chris forgives her, tearing up the pre-nup and Zoe moves out. Chris and Charity marry and Charity helps Chris run his business empire.

Chris and Charity eventually realise that Zoe is ill and she has to be sectioned. While in hospital, she is diagnosed with schizophrenia. Charity supports Zoe when she realizes she is pregnant and considers giving the baby up for adoption, revealing she had a baby girl that she put up for adoption. Charity is shocked when Paddy (Dominic Brunt) and Emily Kirk's (Kate McGregor) foster daughter, Debbie Jones (Charley Webb), realises that Charity is her birth mother. Charity initially refuses contact with Debbie but comforts her when her mother dies. Despite her reserve, she and Debbie bond so Charity files for custody and wins, much to Paddy and Emily's dismay. Charity is delighted when Chris and Debbie bond and he suggests adopting her. Cain later realizes that he is Debbie's father and bonds with his daughter, leading him and Charity to begin an affair. Chris sees them and throws her out. A month later, Charity goes to Home Farm to discuss her marriage, hoping they will reconcile. However, Chris knows that he has an inoperable brain tumour and frames Charity for his murder, before committing suicide. The police arrest Charity after finding her fingerprints on Chris's glass and her signature on an order for poison. She and Cain blame each other so Charity is released on bail when she learns that she is pregnant and moves in with Marlon. After getting drunk, they sleep together. Charity realises Zoe knows that Chris killed himself and kisses her but Zoe testifies that Charity killed Chris so Charity is found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment. While in prison, she gives birth to a son who she names Noah (Alfie Mortimer). Unsure of Noah's paternity, she arranges for Zoe, Cain and Marlon to do a DNA test and the results show that Chris is Noah's father. Charity strikes a deal with Zoe - she can have custody of Noah in return for £20,000 and evidence that Chris committed suicide. Zoe agrees and Charity is released. Zoe refuses to allow Charity any contact with Noah, who she calls Christopher, and plans to adopt him but permission is refused, due to already having 2 children (Chris's eldest son, Joseph (Oliver Young), and her daughter, Jean (Megan Pearson), running Home Farm and her mental health issues. Social Services ask Charity to decide if she wants to raise him or put him up for adoption elsewhere. She chooses to raise him and Zoe returns him to Charity.

Charity sets her sights on Tom King (Ken Farrington) and gets a job as his secretary. Tom's daughter-in-law, Sadie King (Patsy Kensit), takes an instant dislike to Charity and tries to sabotage the plan. Unfortunately this doesn't work and Sadie is forced to accept that Charity is Tom's new partner. Eventually Tom proposes and Charity accepts but Sadie refuses to accept this and hires Cain to kiss Charity in front of a photographer and shows the pictures to Tom. He calls the wedding off, leaving Charity furious. Knowing Sadie is responsible, they fight before she returns to the Dingles. In revenge, Charity has an affair with Jimmy King (Nick Miles), Sadie's husband, looking for something she can use against Sadie. She is thrilled when Jimmy tells her that although he thought they were trying for a baby, she is still having contraceptive injections. Charity records Jimmy talking about this and her plan to set Charity up. Initially, she simply blackmails Jimmy but then plays the video at a party and Tom throws them out before begging her to give him another chance but she refuses, saying that she no longer loves him and leaves with Noah.

2009–
Charity is shocked to see Cain and Debbie at her wedding to Michael Conway (Jamie Belman) and Debbie's news that she and Michael were having an affair. Cain tells Michael that Charity used to be a prostitute and Michael leaves Charity at the altar. Charity reveals that she knew Michael was having doubts and told him that she was pregnant to stop him leaving. Michael is told, very clearly, to choose either Charity or Debbie. He chooses Debbie but she ignores him, choosing to spend time with Charity and Noah. Debbie invites Charity and Noah to move in with her, which they do.

From family gossip, Charity learns that Cain stole money from the Kings and teams up with Carl King (Tom Lister) to get it back. She reconciles with Cain and learns that the money is kept in a storage unit. She takes the money but changes her mind but Cain and Debbie catch her. Cain gives Charity the money and leaves the village. Charity moves in with Marlon and tries to give Debbie the money but she refuses so Charity donates it to the church but Debbie retrieves it. Cain returns and he and Charity agree to be civil. During an argument, Debbie sets fire to the money and realizing they have nothing left to argue about, Charity proposes to Cain and he accepts. Cain organizes a surprise wedding and Chas Dingle (Lucy Pargeter) brings Charity to the registry office. Charity is surprised but won't marry Cain, telling him that she loves him but is not ready to settle down yet.

Charity and Cain start stealing cars to make money after Charity steals a businessman's keys after flirting with him at a local hotel. However, the second time they try this, they learn that their target, Declan Macey (Jason Merrells), knows people in the village and spots Charity. Declan tells her that he will not go to the police if she returns the car and has a drink with him.

Charity helps Chas get revenge on Carl for cheating on her and begins working for Jai Sharma (Chris Bisson). Charity advises Jai on the restoration of the barn next to the Dingle farm. Jai pays Charity to persuade Lisa to sell the farm and move to Hotten, but Lisa refuses. Cain is jealous of Charity and Jai's relationship and warns Jai to stay away. Jai buys Charity a new car and takes her to a hotel but she insists they have separate rooms. Charity ends things with Cain after learning that he slept with Faye Lamb (Kim Thomson), thinking that she had slept with Jai. Charity and Noah move in with Jai and Nikhil (Rik Makarem), at Holdgate Farm. Charity and Jai begin dating and Cain tries to win Charity back but Charity tells him that she is not interested. Charity tries to make Nikhil look incompetent, wanting his job, so Jai throws her out. Charity apologizes and proposes to Jai. He initially refuses but later accepts. Charity, Cain and Cameron Murray (Dominic Power) steal the Kings' haulage trucks and sell them. Refusing to accept Charity is with Jai, Cain starts attacking the Sharmas forcing them to call off their wedding when the threats become more severe. Cain is attacked and Charity is questioned by the police but she insists she did not do it. Charity and Jai reconcile and she supports him when he is charged with assaulting Cain. Charity reveals she found Cain the night he was attacked and walked away. Cain changes his statement and the charges against Jai are dropped. Charity is late for her wedding as she visits Debbie but does marry Jai. Charity tells Jai that she does not want any more children, leaving him disappointed but he suggests that he adopt Noah. Charity disapproves, worried the about the effect it will have on Noah if the marriage failed, so they compromise and change his surname to Sharma. Later, Jai has a drunken one-night stand with Rachel Breckle (Gemma Oaten) and Charity has a one-night stand with Declan and admits it immediately. Jai forgives her as he feels guilty about his own indiscretion, knowing that Rachel is pregnant and later has a son, Archie. Charity becomes suspicious so Jai's father, Rishi, claims to be Archie's father to save Jai's marriage and ensure that Jai can spend time with Archie. However, Charity realizes the truth when Jai overreacts to an injury Archie sustains in an accident with a sparkler and ends the marriage, moving in with Debbie and her children.

Charity sees Declan attempting to commit suicide by burning down Home Farm, unaware that his sister Megan (Gaynor Faye) is inside. Charity persuades Declan to frame her cousin, Sam, so that they can split the insurance money and deprive Jai of his son, thinking Sam, Rachel and the children would go on the run but Rachel refused, insisting that they clear their names. Before Sam's court date, Charity tells Rachel that she and Declan framed Sam and Rachel can clear his name by giving a statement to the police, admitting that she started the fire or Sam will go to prison. Unwilling to see Sam go down, Rachel does as Charity and Declan ask and tells the police that she was the arsonist. When she gets bail, Charity and Declan give her everything she will need to start a new life with Archie. Rachel's sister, Ali, knows that Rachel is innocent but keeps quiet after Charity and Declan threaten her daughter.

Charity and Declan then start dating but no one thinks it will last. Charity realizes she is pregnant in April and plans to have a termination, feeling that she and Declan couldn't cope with a child. However, Declan finds out when Megan finds the positive test in the bin at Debbie's house. He is happy and proposes to her, making her walk out. Later, Charity accepts Declan's proposal and Declan announces their engagement in The Woolpack and Charity's pregnancy, just as Jai walks in. Charity later decides to go ahead with a termination and offloads to her consultant, bursting into tears and telling her how she gave Debbie up for adoption. However, after booking an abortion, she finds that Declan has told Noah about the baby. Charity marries Declan with only Noah, Megan and Declan's nephew, Robbie Lawson (Jamie Shelton), present. Megan tries to sabotage the wedding and sets off the fire alarm. Charity realizes what Megan is up to and a catfight broke out. She panics when Declan reveals he has booked a month's holiday to Barbados for them and Noah as she worries over how to have her abortion. However, a confrontation with Megan a few days later gives Charity an opportunity to feign miscarriage when she is accidentally knocked to the floor. A scan at the hospital confirms she has lost the baby, leaving Declan devastated. Wracked with guilt, Megan tells Declan that she is resigning and won't move into Home Farm but Jai advises her to test Charity's intentions. Charity is shaken when Megan says she may stay after all and is horrified to find Megan telling Declan that she caused the miscarriage. Enraged, Declan throws Megan out. Charity, relieved, agrees to rearrange a late honeymoon for them and Noah, but insists it is too soon for another baby, much to Declan's chagrin. A vengeful Megan then decides to spy on Charity with Nicola at Home Farm. After returning from Barbados, Charity agrees to try for another baby.

When Declan finds out about Charity's abortion, he keeps quiet and takes her away for a romantic break but tries to kill her, hitting her with a mallet and tries to shoot her with a flare gun. However, Declan accidentally shoots Robbie, when he tries to save Charity and later dies from the blast. Declan tries to drown Charity by pulling her into the lake but she hits him over the head with an anchor and he sinks into the water. Charity then passes out on the boat, stating "You were never a match for me", while Megan watches. Charity is extremely paranoid when she returns to the village and manages to patch things up with Megan before Robbie's funeral. Declan later returns and drugs Charity, while holding Megan, Jai, Cain, Debbie, Sam, Zak, Chas and Ashley hostage at the Sharma house. He tells them how Charity framed Rachel for the fire at Home Farm, before leaving the village. The Dingles and Jai then confront a bitter Charity, who eventually confesses. When they turn on her, Charity retaliates that they are all hypocrites and that she no longer wants to be part of the family. Zak promptly disowns her before leaving with Chas and Sam, who expresses his hatred towards Charity. Jai leaves too, but not before vowing to make Charity suffer for what she did to him. Debbie and Cain reveal their disgust and, despite Charity's pleas, walk away. When trying to leave, Charity is attacked and kidnapped by an unknown culprit and held in a shipping container in the woods. It was later revealed that the kidnapper is Jai. He tells Charity that unless she reveals Rachel and Archie's location, she will be left to die. While arguing with Sam about Rachel's whereabouts, Jai falls down the stairs and falls into a coma, but reveals where Charity is. Sam goes to the shipping container and hears Charity stating that she only cares about herself and should care more about Debbie and Noah. Sam leaves Charity there but eventually tells Cain where Charity is and he and Sam save her. To redeem herself to her family, Charity drives off with Maxine (Rebecca Manley), a woman who is blackmailing Cain's wife, Moira. She drives extremely fast down narrow country lanes and threatens to kill her if she gives Moira any more grief. Moira worries that Charity has made things worse, while Cain is proud of Charity's actions.

Charity, meanwhile, is found guilty for perverting the course of justice and is sentenced to two years in prison. When Cain takes Noah to visit Charity in prison, she tells him that she has a plan in the works that might help her get early release. Charity goes into labour while Debbie is there, unaware that Charity is pregnant. She gives birth to a baby boy and hands him to a social worker, telling them Debbie is the legal guardian until she is released from prison. Knowing that Charity confessed her love for Cain after her imprisonment, Debbie and Chas suspect that Cain is the father, which he denies. He visits Charity in prison and demands to know who the father is, otherwise he will sever all contact but she refuses to divulge the father's identity so Cain walks out. The Dingles name the baby Moses. Charity calls the father, Ross Barton (Michael Parr), when Moses is rushed to hospital and needs an operation. Soon after, Cain tells Debbie that Ross is Moses's father, to stop her leaving the village with him. After Charity is released from prison, she steals a Ferrari. When she gets it stuck in a field, she needs Cain and Moira's help to avoid the police. She later becomes the new owner of The Woolpack.

Cain and Moira's marriage breaks down and he kisses Charity. Cain saves Charity from a drug dealer, after she tries to find Belle, who has gone missing. Cain and Charity have sex in the garage, and he stands up for her in front of Zak and Lisa. They continue dating, and plan to leave the village to stay with Debbie in France. However, Cain changes his mind, as he still loves Moira, so Charity fakes her suicide by crashing his car in a quarry.

Charity develops a relationship with Vanessa Woodfield (Michelle Hardwick). She later tells her that when she was 14 years old, she was repeatedly raped by policeman Mark Bails (Rocky Marshall). He also physically attacked her on several occasions and even used to pimp her out to other men. When she fell pregnant, she started drinking heavily to induce a miscarriage. Eventually, Charity went into labour while escaping Bails' clutches and gave birth to a baby boy in hospital, however, he had to be rushed away as he was not breathing. As the doctors tried to bring him back, Charity watched on and, convinced he was dead, she ran out of the hospital. After reporting Bails to the police, Charity learns that her baby survived and he is called Ryan Stocks (James Moore). She soon works out that he was adopted by the midwife that helped deliver him.

Casting
Actress Suranne Jones auditioned for the role of Charity, however it was Atkins who was eventually cast. The actress received the part while she was in her final year of a performing arts degree at Salford University. Her agent asked her if she wanted to audition for a role as a Dingle in Emmerdale and Atkins wondered whether she would be able to portray a member of that family, as she is so removed from those types of characters. The actress told Merle Brown of the Daily Record that the more her agent told her about the role, the more she thought she would enjoy playing it. Atkins attended the audition and was later recalled to do a screen test alongside Mark Charnock (who plays Marlon Dingle). Two weeks later, Atkins was told she had won the role of Charity. She began filming her scenes in February 2000 and made her first appearance in March.

On 26 July 2004, Kris Green of Digital Spy reported Atkins had quit Emmerdale, claiming that it was time to move on. Of her decision to leave, Atkins said "I will be desperately sad to say goodbye to everyone but there are so many other roles that I would like to try and it's important to me that Charity leaves on a high." Atkins made her on screen departure on 1 March 2005.

On 18 March 2009, it was announced Atkins would be returning to Emmerdale as part of the ongoing overhaul of the show by series producer, Gavin Blyth. Of her decision to reprise her role, Atkins said: "Charity is a wonderfully complex character and an absolute joy to play. I couldn't resist the opportunity to explore a new era of Charity, Cain and Debbie and will relish seeing what she's been up to since we saw her last." Charity and her five-year-old son returned on 1 October 2009. Two months later, Digital Spy's Kris Green reported Atkins had signed a six-month extension to her contract, keeping her with the show well into 2010.

On 20 January 2015, Atkins confirmed that she would be taking maternity leave from the show. Charity was written out of Emmerdale after receiving a prison sentence for perverting the course of justice. After a few brief returns throughout the rest of 2015, Charity returned permanently on 10 March 2016 when she was eventually released from prison.

Development

Characterisation

During a 2001 interview with the Daily Mirror's Nina Myskow, Atkins said she loved playing Charity as she is a ballsy wild child who is not scared of anything. Atkins commented that her character is everything she is not. Myskow agreed with Atkins and said the actress is nothing like Charity, who she called a "loud-mouthed bad girl." Writing for the Daily Record, Merle Brown deemed Charity a "brassy tart with a heart." Atkins told him Charity is very argumentative, flirty and a bitch, which makes her "a brilliant character to play." Atkins said there are many different sides to Charity that she hoped viewers would get to see as she developed. Tessa Cunningham of the Daily Mirror branded Charity a "manipulative gold-digger." Of Charity's style, Atkins said "She's a lady of the night - looks like a slapper, a complete slapper. I wouldn't have it any other way. I get to wear short mini-skirts and things I'd never dream of wearing. Going shopping with the costume people is brilliant fun, because it's like: "Oh God, that's so bad. Yeah, we'll have it." Atkins added Charity does not have to open her mouth as her outfits say everything for her.

Three years after her introduction, Atkins revealed Charity had developed into a "bigger, fiestier and more business-oriented" woman. The actress said she had grown into the character and hoped she would remain cheeky, mischievous and a tart with a heart. Atkins added Charity is playful, but not evil or corrupt. A writer for the Western Mail called Charity "mad, bad and dangerous to know." In February 2011, Atkins said Charity cannot resist an element of risk to anything because it is exciting to her and it makes village life more exciting too. Atkins explained that Charity is the sort of person who does not know why she is in a village like Emmerdale, as she has "much bigger fish to fry" elsewhere.

Relationship with Chris Tate and affair with Zoe Tate
Charity begins an "unlikely relationship" with wheelchair-bound, local millionaire, Chris Tate (Peter Amory). Charity realises she likes Chris when she becomes involved with his businesses. Charity thinks he is sweet and they get on well. When Chris suspects Charity is cheating on him, her flirtatious habits do little to reassure him. Charity denies Chris's accusations that she is seeing somebody else. Atkins told Claire Brand of Inside Soap "Charity has been trying to convince Chris that nothing is going on. She's been having blazing rows with him and saying 'How could you possibly accuse me?' She's making him feel really guilty about suspecting her and he ends up wallowing in self pity, thinking he's blown it with her." Atkins went on to say Charity is very clever and makes Chris do what she says, as opposed to the other way round, which Chris is used to. Charity flirts with many of the men in the village to make Chris jealous. Chris decides to trap Charity and invites all the major suspects – Marlon Dingle, Scott Windsor (Ben Freeman) and Rodney Blackstock (Patrick Mower) – to an important party Charity is helping to organise. Atkins said viewers would be surprised to find out who Charity is seeing behind Chris's back.

Charity's secret lover was revealed to be Chris's sister, Zoe (Leah Bracknell), during a special hour-long episode. Atkins explained the storyline was a shock to her as she had always thought Charity was "a man's woman." However, the more she thought about it, the more she realised the story made sense. Atkins explained "Charity lives on the edge. She's certainly not gay, but she loves sex and it doesn't matter whether it's with a man or a woman." Atkins said Charity likes to play games and she finds the idea of an affair with Chris's sister exciting. The actress did not think the storyline was "sensationalist" and reckoned Charity is probably bisexual and was only just realising that through her relationship with Zoe. Charity eventually ends the relationship with Zoe and goes on to marry Chris, despite admitting she does not love him and his money is the big attraction. Atkins said Charity is honest, but she does have feelings for Chris, which would grow. She added the lesbian affair had run its course, but she thought there might be repercussions from it in the future.

Reception
For her portrayal of Charity, Atkins was nominated in the categories of Best Actress, Best Exit and Best Single Episode (for her wedding with Tom) at the 2005 British Soap Awards. In 2010, Atkins was nominated for the Best Actress award. The following year she and Hordley received a nomination for Best On-Screen Partnership. The character was selected as one of the "top 100 British soap characters" by industry experts for a poll to be run by What's on TV, with readers able to vote for their favourite character to discover "Who is Soap's greatest Legend?" Kris Green of Digital Spy called Charity "one of the soap's most controversial characters." Steve Hendry of the Sunday Mail branded the Charity, Chris and Zoe storyline as "one of soapland's more bizarre love triangles." A writer for Virgin Media named Cain and Charity one of "Soaps' sexiest couples." Laura Morgan of All About Soap said that viewers should not count on Charity settling into married life with Jai, especially with Cain hanging around "like a bad smell". A Sunday Mail reporter dubbed Charity "one of the great British soap villains". Charity's sentencing in January 2015 was named one of "the best bits of January" in the Inside Soap Yearbook 2016. In August 2017, Atkins was longlisted for Best Bad Girl at the Inside Soap Awards. Despite making the viewer-voted shortlist, Atkins did not win the award. For her portrayal of Charity, Atkins was nominated for Best Soap Actor (Female) at the 2018 Digital Spy Reader Awards; she came in second place with 17.2% of the toal vote. The storyline "Charity fights for justice against DI Bails" was also nominated at the awards under the "Best Soap Storyline" category; it came in third place with 14% of the total vote. Charity's pairing with Vanessa was also nominated for "Best Soap Couple"; they came in fourth place with 9.4% of the total vote. In 2019, Atkins received a National Television Awards nomination in the Serial Drama Performance category for her portrayal of Charity.

References

External links
 Charity Dingle at itv.com

Emmerdale characters
Television characters introduced in 2000
Female characters in television
Fictional female businesspeople
Fictional career criminals
Fictional con artists
Fictional factory workers
Fictional prostitutes
Fictional bisexual females
Fictional criminals in soap operas
Fictional characters involved in incest
Fictional teenage parents
Female villains
Fictional bartenders
Fictional prisoners and detainees
Fictional LGBT characters in television
LGBT villains