WAGs come out to play as sulky Beckham snubs glittering charity event at just two hours notice

Sir Elton John, Natalie Imbruglia, England stars Peter Crouch and John Terry, and their glamorous WAG partners, rubbed shoulders with the Prime Minister at the glittering fundraising bash which had been a year in the planning by Barcelona star Thierry Henry.

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Sir Elton topped the bill, comedian Jimmy Carr performed and David Walliams and Matt Lucas performed one of their Lou and Andy sketches for the celeb-packed audience, to help raise £1million-plus for the Cystic Fibrosis Trust and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

Gordon and Sarah Brown's younger son, Fraser, suffers from cystic fibrosis - a chronic disease which affects the lungs and digestive system.

However, despite the attendance of luminaries such as Sir Elton, Chelsea captain John Terry and Liverpool striker Peter Crouch, it was substitute host David Beckham's no-show which raised eyebrows.

Beckham - who was yesterday left out of England boss Fabio Capello's first squad - had been due to attend last night's fundraising event in London.

But the 99-cap midfielder was unable to make it and reportedly sent a video message apologising for his absence.

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Guests at last night's gala labelled Beckham "a sulk".

One charity source said: "His decision to cancel at the last minute was lousy.

"We're gutted he has left us in the lurch."

Reporters were told he had been called back to the US where he plays for LA Galaxy.

Sir Elton John, who was performing at the event, told the Daily Mirror he had only found out Beckham could not attend last night, adding: "I'm sure he's disappointed."

He also said he hoped the former England captain would make a comeback and finally get his 100th international cap that he craves.

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"I'm sure that he will get his 100 caps eventually - he always bounces back from this kind of adversity," said the singer as he arrived for the cystic fibrosis charity dinner.

"He's bound to be disappointed but he has always bounced back."

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, who has allowed Beckham to train with his team whilst he was staying in London, appeared to contradict England Manager Fabio Capello's claims that the midfielder is not fit enough to be included in the squad.

"It is a bit of a surprise," he said. "But Beckham will want 100 caps on merit, not on sentiment. He is match fit and ready to play but he has not played a competitive game recently and that's the difference. Capello knows what he can do though."

Celebrities who were able to attend last night's event included England footballer Peter Crouch, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, and TV presenter Trinny Woodall.

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Celebrity guests at the charity event paid £25,000 for a table. And took part in a silent auction to raise money for fighting the chronic disease. Speaking about Beckham's absence, Crouch said: "I've no idea why he's not here. It's the first I've heard of it. It's a bit disappointing. Of course I'd have liked to see him."

Arsenal striker Emmanuel Adebayor told the newspaper: "We have a chance to do something good to help these people. I'm sad that Beckham is not here."

A spokesman for Beckham reportedly said the star was "very disappointed".

Beckham was said to have agreed to host the event after Thierry Henry had to drop out due to fixture changes. Henry flew over to organise the event yesterday, but had to return to Spain by the afternoon.

Last week, he said: "I would love to have been there, but I have a great substitute. That's the sort of guy he is."

In his absence, the star-studded event was hosted by Big Brother's Davina McCall.

Spokesman for the event Shervin Behzad said: "David was definitely expected to attend this evening.

"But we just got a phone call to say he was on a plane back to America and we were left without any explanation."