The Real Diana

As C4 screens a rare interview with the Princess of Wales, TV Times talks to two of her confidantes

 

- Ian Macewan

Diana, Princess of Wales, caused a storm when, in her infamous 1995 Panorama interview, she discussed her husband Prince Charles’s affair with Camilla ParkerBowles, her own bulimia and her infatuation with James Hewitt.

Twenty years after her death in a car crash in Paris, C4’s new documentary, Diana: In Her Own Words, has gained access to another filmed interview, previously unseen, in which a much more informal Diana shares more thoughts on some of the most private aspects of her life.

Recorded during sessions with her speech coach, Peter Settelen, in the early 1990s, the video footage sees Diana reflecting on subjects such as Charles’s fumbling courtship, the royal couple’s sex life, Camilla’s influence on their marriage, her depression and her close relationship with bodyguard Barry Mannakee.

‘Given that the only filmed interview we’ve ever seen with Diana is Martin Bashir’s Panorama interview, this is a unique piece of historical archive,’ explains C4’s Head of Factual, Ralph Lee.

‘For the first time viewers will feel that they’re seeing a natural, relaxed and personal Diana.’