大象传媒

You really would need to have been wrapped in cotton wool, bless, over the past couple of days to have missed David Beckham hitting the headlines again. However, it wasn't for scoring the winning goal or due to reported relationship problems. No, it was his admission to having Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD).

In an interview with Tim Lovejoy, to be broadcast on ITV1 in the run-up to this summer's World Cup, David Beckham said:

"I have got this disorder where I have to have everything in a straight line or everything has to be in pairs. I'll put my Pepsi cans in the fridge and if there's one too many then I'll put it in another cupboard somewhere. I'll go into a hotel room and before I can relax I have to move all the leaflets and all the books and put them in a drawer."

He recalls regular teasing by Manchester United players, while with the club at away games: "I thought they were just coming in for a chat. But then they'd go out and I'm thinking, 'Something's different here'. And then all the magazines would be all wonky."

Luckily, David need certainly not feel alone or uncomfortable with his OCD in celeb land. The press have managed to put together an extensive list of stars who are reported to have Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, including: Paul Gascoigne, Woody Allen, Harrison Ford, Emily Lloyd, Michelle Pfeiffer, Billy Bob Thornton, Natalie Appleton and Winona Ryder. And from earlier eras: Howard Hughs, Charles Dickens and Marcel Prouste.

And of course there's Ouch! We'll speak to you about OCD any time, Mr Beckham, and our regular columns by OCD'er Julia Kite are essential reading.

If you want to avoid tabloidy headlines such as: 'Straighten it like Beckham', and 'Count it like Beckham', then check out the Daily Mail's or in yesterday's Independent.