The Manchester United footballer and his pop-star wife are said to have bought the motorised bed so that the England captain can “rest properly” while being driven home from matches at Old Trafford. The 210-mile drive to their “Beckingham Palace” home in Hertfordshire is thought to take about three hours.

Michael Coleman, legal director of Designer Vision, the London firm that installed the bed, said last week he was not prepared to discuss confidential business dealings. However, a friend of the Beckhams’ confirmed the purchase: “They’ve spent twice as much money getting the people mover fitted out as they have on the vehicle itself.

“You might think it’s a bit over the top but it’s actually very low-key and the finishing is gorgeous.”

Insiders say the specially designed contraption was installed last month during a makeover of the Mercedes people mover. At the push of a button the rear passenger seat swivels flat and moves forward to align with the edge of two rear-facing seats and a fridge to form a 6ft 5in bed.

To ensure privacy, an electric partition of reinforced glass slides up between the driver and passenger compartments. It is “smoked” on one side so that the Beckhams can see out but the driver cannot see in.

“The bed’s surface is covered with the finest silver grey kid leather and finished with grey Alcantara trimmings,” said the source. “The same material has been used to line the interiors of some of their other cars.”

Matching bolster pillows are also supplied, although the couple are thought to have replaced these with satin pillows. “The bed is big enough for four people,” the source added.

Beckham’s love of expensive cars has recently been overshadowed by his passion for shopping and new hairstyles. However, the joke in the dressing room at Old Trafford is that he now owns enough cars to move the entire Manchester United squad.

Last year he bought a £166,000 Bentley Arnage. He also has a £110,000 Ferrari 360 Spider, with a top speed of 183mph, and an armour-plated Mercedes S 500, complete with bulletproof windows. They sit alongside a BMW X5 four-wheel-drive, a Lincoln Navigator, a Chrysler Grand Voyager, a Harley-Davidson and at least three other Ferraris and an Aston Martin DB7.

The new Mercedes people mover is now garaged with the rest of the fleet at the £2.6m Grade III listed converted children’s home in Sawbridge, Hertfordshire, that is the couple’s main home.

In addition to the bed, which was imported from America and originally designed to be fitted in the Cadillac Escalade, the vehicle is fitted with a series of security devices, including shatterproof black-tinted glass.

It also boasts the latest in-car entertainment system. At the flick of a switch, two 17in plasma TV screens butterfly down from the roof of the passenger compartment. A 10-disc DVD player and an MP3 multi-track surround sound music system can be accessed through remote headphones.

The £60,000 cost of the refit is a drop in the ocean for the Beckhams. David, 28, earns £5m a year playing football and perhaps double that for endorsing products such as Vodafone and Adidas. Victoria’s career in music is thought to have added a further £10m to their wealth, bringing the family fortune to £50m, according to The Sunday Times Rich List.

After an alleged kidnap attempt last year, security around the couple and their children, Brooklyn, 4, and Romeo, 10 months, has been increased. oIn a televised message to England supporters before this Tuesday’s friendly against Serbia and Montenegro, Beckham will appeal to fans to be on their best behaviour and not to boo the national anthem or run onto the pitch. It follows crowd violence and racist chanting in the game against Turkey in April. A repeat of such violence could bar England from the 2004 European championship.

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