- Title: Princess Diana's revelations about sex and sorrow to be aired on British TV
- Date: 2nd August 2017
- Summary: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (AUGUST 2, 2017) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) KEN WHARFE, DIANA'S FORMER PERSONAL PROTECTION OFFICER, TALKING ABOUT THE TAPES, SAYING: "There clearly was a breakdown in her marriage from the very beginning almost. And here we were in the mid 1980s and she desperately tried to make it work. Looking for a path of reconciliation but sadly that path never came about."
- Embargoed: 16th August 2017 21:59
- Keywords: Princess Diana tapes documentary Ken Wharfe protection officer Prince Charles Prince William Prince Harry
- Location: VARIOUS
- City: VARIOUS
- Country: United Kingdom
- Topics: Arts / Culture / Entertainment,Royals
- Reuters ID: LVA0036SGPBUV
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: THIS EDIT CONTAINS MATERIAL WHICH WAS ORIGINALLY 4:3
Recordings of Princess Diana speaking candidly about her sex life with Prince Charles and her sorrow at the spectacular collapse of her marriage will be broadcast on British television on Sunday.
Diana, first wife of the heir to the British throne, died aged 36 in Paris on Aug. 31, 1997, after the limousine carrying her and lover Dodi al-Fayed crashed in a tunnel as it tried to escape paparazzi who were chasing them on motorbikes.
Diana was just 19 when she was betrothed to Charles in 1981, but the marriage broke down. Diana blamed Camilla Parker Bowles, Charles's lover who later became his wife, for the collapse of the marriage.
In a documentary planned to coincide with the 20th anniversary of Diana's death, broadcaster Channel 4 will show footage of her speaking about her marriage during privately recorded sessions with an adviser on public speaking.
The footage includes Diana speaking about her sex life with Charles.
Diana's former personal protection officer, Ken Wharfe, who features in the documentary, said Princes William and Harry would not be upset by the footage.
"They'll see their mother being witty, being funny and being normal and being the very person they say she is, a loving individual. And that is what Diana is saying on the so-called tapes, tapes which just form a fraction of the running time of this documentary," he said.
However, critics including Ingrid Seward, a Diana biographer and editor of Majesty magazine, said she believed her sons would not be pleased about hearing 'intimate details' about their parents' marriage.
"I think it's just really unpleasant for anyone to listen to their parents talking about intimate details of their marriage," she said.
Robert Jobson, London Evening Standard royal editor and author of New York Times bestseller "Diana: Closely Guarded Secret", said he didn't understand the controversy.
"The monarchy is an unelected institution, it's paid for by the British taxpayer so I am not sure why the British taxpayer shouldn't be allowed to see it, if you don't like it, don't watch it."
Kensington Palace declined to comment on the documentary. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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