Charles doesn’t eat and drink David Beckham for fun. With his troubled royal foundation still embroiled in VERY tough questions, the king is trying to save his pet project with stardust, writes KATE MANSEY

It looks like King Charles would like to have dinner with David Beckham. A date for dinner is in the agenda.

And it was only a few weeks ago that another celebrity dinner partner, actress Sienna Miller, was brought to Scotland to meet the King at Dumfries House, the cultural center run by his charity, The Prince’s Foundation.

A case of an anxious monarch snuggling up to the celebrities? Easy enough to make you grin, but there’s actually a bit more to it than a star-struck monarch or an appetite for easy headlines.

Exclusive to The Mail on Sunday, which threw The Prince’s Foundation into troubling questions and prompted the Prince’s right-hand man, Michael Fawcett, to resign

David Beckham and his wife Victoria show off their OBE at Buckingham Palace in 2003

Sienna Miller at Wimbledon. The actress was invited to meet Charles as part of a secret plan to revive his main charity

As the longest-serving Prince of Wales in history, Charles III knows all too well that stardust works, especially when mixed with royalty. This is exactly the magical combination that has helped bring the Prince’s Trust to worldwide fame.

After founding the charity in 1976, Charles used the power of celebrity alongside the prestige of the historic dynasty to help more than a million young people.

Today he once again uses the proven formula.

Where Beckham and the King will meet has yet to be decided, but it is a meeting that could certainly benefit the former English football captain, who has made no secret of his desire for a knighthood.

For Charles the advantage is even greater. Beckham’s iconic celebrity status could help transform the fortunes of a charity to which the king remains deeply associated.

Because Charles is not only trying to help the Foundation, which has been a huge part of his life’s work – and has undoubtedly done a tremendous amount of good – he wants to completely rebrand the Foundation.

If the curators have their way, it will soon become the King’s Foundation.

(This is not quite a fact yet: the name ‘King’s Foundation’ is currently owned by another, smaller charity. Aides are working to convince the small group to transfer the copyright. The discussion is said to be ‘amicable’.)

Why bother when the current name, The Prince’s Foundation, already packs a global punch?

The former Prince of Wales with Michael Fawcett, CEO of The Prince’s Foundation, in May 2019

For all its good work, the charity’s problems are well documented – and serious.

Questions have been raised about the eye-watering donations pouring in from foreign tycoons. Those who gave generously were rewarded with invitations to meet the royal personage himself.

Following revelations by The Mail on Sunday, The Prince’s Foundation was faced with accusations of ‘cash for honours’.

The good news for Charles is that a police investigation into this has now been dropped and Scotland’s charity regulator has said it is satisfied the charity is continuing its activities.

This fortunate development has encouraged the Foundation – and Charles – to plan for the future. And that means shaking off the shadows of the past.

When he came to the throne, the king said that he would no longer have so much time for good causes. This was inevitable. His workload – especially when it comes to state affairs – has increased.

David Beckham presented the king with a jar of his own home-produced honey at the British Fashion Council earlier this year

King Charles stands by the logo of ‘The Prince’s Trust’ as he welcomes guests during a reception for African business leaders at Garrison Chapel in October

Every day he has to deal with red boxes of government documents while dealing with pressing issues at home and abroad, plus a weekly audience with the Prime Minister.

The new name is therefore a sign of Charles’ real commitment to the Foundation – and of his determination to protect his legacy as a hard-working philanthropist.

But first he must preserve the Foundation’s shaky reputation.

And that, whatever His Majesty would make private of Beckham Inc, or his tattoos, is exactly where the man with 84.7 million Instagram followers comes into the equation.