‘DIANA WAS SO DESPERATE FOR CONNECTION'

AS SPENCER HITS CINEMA SCREENS THIS WEEK ACTRESS KRISTENSTEWART REVEALS WHAT IT WAS LIKE PORTRAYING THE LATE PRINCESS OF WALES

- ADAM TANSWELL

Just like Princess Diana, who she portrays in the new film Spencer, Hollywood star Kristen Stewart is no stranger to controversy. At the age of 18, she was thrown into the spotlight as Bella Swan in the Twilight franchise, then her much-talked-about off-screen relationship with co-star Robert Pattinson hit the rocks after she reportedly cheated on him with film director Rupert Sanders in 2012. Kristen was later linked to musician St Vincent, dated supermodel Stella Maxwell and is now said to be head over heels in love with screenwriter girlfriend Dylan Meyer.

But the focus of late has been her role as Diana in Spencer, with critics and fans raving about her performance. Last week, Kristen stepped out for the LA premiere, attracting praise for her “extraordinary” and “masterful” portrayal of the royal.

We catch up with the 31-year-old actress to talk about the film, set across three days in 1991 as Diana’s marriage crumbled, and how Kristen, too, has struggled to cope with fame…

Hi, Kristen. What royal etiquette did you learn while making Spencer?

There was always someone around to make sure we were remaining authentic and weren’t undermining what we were trying to do with the film. But specifically, I would say that the only thing I can really remember is the curtsy. And you don’t do it very low at all, or else you will fall over!

What else did your research involve?