The Late Diana, Princess of Wales News Thread 1: December 2002-February 2005

[micas]

 

[Gabriella]

LOS ANGELES, California (Reuters) -- More than six years after her death, audio and videotapes Princess Diana secretly recorded during her ill-fated marriage to Prince Charles will get their first public airing next month on NBC, the network said on Thursday.

NBC said it would present excerpts of the audio tapes, the principal source for Andrew Morton's 1992 international bestseller "Diana: Her True Story," and separate video footage taken of her during the same period, in a special two-part broadcast set for March 4 and March 11.

The two-hour documentary, titled "Princess Diana: The Secret Tapes," also will feature interviews with some of Diana's closest friends and confidants, NBC said.

An NBC spokeswoman said the video comes from an hour of footage shot by a "professional associate" of Diana's with her permission between September 1992 and December of 1993, a period when details of her troubled marriage had already come to light in Morton's book.

NBC said the footage shows a "relaxed, candid Diana at times laughing and interacting with her young sons, illustrating the lighter side of a woman who maintained a very reserved public persona."

The audiotapes, by contrast, offer an exclusive account, in Diana's own voice, of her life before becoming a princess, her long struggle with bulimia, her suicide attempts, the heartache over her husband's infidelity and her strained relations with other members of the Royal family.

Those recordings, about seven hours of taped responses to Morton's written questions, were secretly made in Kensington Palace in 1991 during a series of interviews conducted through an intermediary.

They formed the basis of Morton's 1992 book, which demolished the myth of Diana's fairy-tale marriage to Charles and triggered a chain of events that led to their divorce in July of 1996.

But it was only after Diana's death in a Paris car crash in 1997 that Morton revealed she had collaborated with him on the biography. A revised version of the book, "Diana: Her True Story in Her Own Words," was released weeks after the fatal crash containing edited transcripts of the recordings.

But NBC said those tapes, like the video footage the network has acquired, have never been heard by the public. The General Electric Co.-owned network did not disclose exactly how it acquired rights to the material.

 

[micas]

Some 1 now what is the size of Diana shoses?????????~
My is 38-39.

 

[Yennie]

A picture I´ve never seen before... Its of Diana and her god daughter Domenica Lawson

Diana and Domenica

 

[micas]

Wonderful pic.......... :flower: :flower: :flower: :flower:

 

[Lady Jean]

I'm interested to hear what people thought of the NBC show "Diana: The Secret Tapes" which aired a few weeks ago (when LTR was down). This featured the audiotapes used by Andrew Morton for his book.

 

[Dennism]

BBC


Pictures of Diana, Princess of Wales taken as she lay dying are due to be broadcast on television on the US.

The photographs will show the princess moments after the 1997 car crash in a Paris tunnel, which led to her death.

The pictures will be shown on the US network CBS, which said it had obtained a copy of the confidential French investigation report into the crash.

The programme, called 48 Hours, is to be broadcast at 21:00 on Wednesday

The US broadcaster says it has also obtained confidential documents relating to the crash.

These reportedly include forensic analysis of the scene and vehicle, and post-mortem examination of the driver, Henri Paul.

A spokeswoman for the CBS programme confirmed the show would include images of Diana at the scene of the crash.

The programme will also examine rumours that the Princess was pregnant when she died - a suggestion strongly denied by former royal coroner Dr John Burton, who was present at her post-mortem examination.

Diana's former protection officer Ken Wharfe and Patrick Jephson, her chief of staff, are also interviewed on the show

 

[maryshawn]

Apparently, 48 hours or some primetime show is broadcasting a show about Princess Diana and all the conspiracy theories, contrasting theories with facts. It airs tonight (Wed) at 9 PM cST. Might be interesting.

 

[Alexandria]

Source: Yahoo News

Diana Family 'Shocked and Sickened' by CBS Photos
Thu Apr 22, 8:10 AM ET

By Peter Graff

LONDON (Reuters) - The family of Britain's Princess Diana said on Thursday it was "shocked and sickened" by a U.S. television network's decision to show pictures of her taken as she lay dying in a Paris road tunnel.

Even Prime Minister Tony Blair (news - web sites) weighed in to denounce the pictures.

CBS broke what Britain's own media had long considered the ultimate taboo on Wednesday by showing photocopies of pictures of the much-loved princess at the scene of her death at 37 in a 1997 car crash.

The copies came from a file held by French authorities, who seized the pictures from paparazzi photographers racing behind Diana's Mercedes, the TV show, "48 Hours Investigates," said.

"Lord Spencer and his family are shocked and sickened by CBS's actions," said a statement released on behalf of Diana's brother, Earl Charles Spencer.

Asked about the program at his monthly news conference, Blair said: "I think everyone finds it distasteful that there are pictures which can cause distress to the family."

Many photographers arrived quickly at the scene of the crash and similar pictures appeared on Web sites and in European magazines shortly after Diana's death. But mainstream English-language media have until now opted not to show them.

Buckingham Palace, which speaks on behalf of Diana's sons William and Harry, said it would not comment on the CBS pictures, but did not hide its displeasure.

"We've made our opinion very clear in the past on this sort of thing and we won't be commenting specifically," a spokesman said.

CBS defended the decision to show the photographs, saying they were "placed in a journalistic context -- an examination of the medical treatment given to Princess Diana just after the crash -- and are in no way graphic or exploitative."

The CBS program looked at evidence gathered in the French investigation of the crash, but does not appear to have revealed many new details of a story that has been told and retold countless times in the last seven years.

A summary of the French evidence was published in 1999 and concluded that Diana died because her driver, Henri Paul, was drunk. Paul and Diana's lover Dodi al Fayed were also killed.

Dodi's father Mohamed al Fayed, the Egyptian-born owner of Harrods department store in London, has long said he believes Diana was murdered.

He accused CBS of "cashing in" by using the pictures, and his lawyers wrote to the network with a "personal plea" not to show them, saying they had been available for years and that airing them now would add nothing to the investigation.

"We cannot imagine that CBS News would want to be the first enterprise to breach the collective understanding of the media based upon good taste, propriety, decency and sympathy," they wrote.

Conspiracy theories got a boost last year when Diana's former butler published a letter in which she said she feared somebody might kill her by tampering with her brakes. But French authorities found no evidence her car had been sabotaged.

Britain launched an inquest into Diana's death this year, with evidence due to be heard next year.

 

[corazon]

I have one picture of Diana in car.... what I must go?

 

[Yennie]

there are several at brainpix

I dont know what to think if it... must be horrible for her family to see those pics.
I felt sick looking at them...

 

[sara1981]

i got bad news that Princess Diana's mum in the hospital following serious Illness that not funny for her children!

i got three articles i found out this morning!

http://www.thisislondon.com - see Princess Diana's mum
http://www.itv.com - see Princess Diana's mum
http://www.mirror.co.uk - see Princess Diana's mum

if you have more infomation let me know im charge of Princess Diana's articles but i really shock of her mother had serious illness if you had another articles let me know about it!

Sara Boyce

 

[karla64]

yeah,,

i know she having problem her health.. I hope she doing okay.. also i hope that William and Harry can visit her. Last time They saw her since the funeral of Diana.. Pray for her and her family........



Karla

 

[Jackswife]

I hadn't heard anything about it here in the USA, but it's very sad news. I did not realize her health had taken such a bad turn lately. Very, very sad.

 

[Duchess Sophie]

how to get into Brainpix??

 

[Alexandria]

Source: Hello!

Charles Speaks Out on Diana Crash Photos
23 APRIL 2004

Prince Charles was among the high-profile names speaking out after a US network broadcast photos of Princess Diana lying injured in the 1997 car crash in which she lost her life.

A spokesman for the Prince of Wales, quoted in British newspaper The Sun, said of the controversial screening: "We don't think anything is to be gained by going over the tragic events of 1997." Clarence House did not officially comment on behalf of Diana's sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, but a senior source said the two were "dismayed" and "horrified" by the decision to air the photos.

Diana's brother, Earl Spencer, expressed stronger sentiments, saying he was "shocked and sickened" by the programme. And Prime Minister Tony Blair also joined the backlash, branding the show "distasteful" and remarking it could cause "great distress to her family".

American network CBS, which showed the grainy photo of the Princess being attended by a French doctor in the mangled vehicle, says the pictures were presented with "great respect and care". "She looks very beautiful," said a representative. "She looks like she is sleeping… (The photos) are not gruesome."

Meanwhile, Diana's family is facing further sadness. According to press reports, the Princess' mother, Frances Shand Kydd, is seriously ill in hospital, suffering from an advanced and incurable brain disease. Earl Spencer and his sister, Lady Sarah McCorquodale, visited the 68-year-old in hospital, where staffers are said to be "concerned" about her condition.

 

[lunara]

Did anyone see Diana's crash pics that were aired on CBS??
They say her face was almost unblemished ...but I'm confused because i found one pic on Kazaa, supposedly from crash and her face looks mangled ...so i would be relived to know that the ones from Kazaa are in fact fake
Did anyone see her face??...was it bad

 

[Gabriella]

I inadvertently saw the program. Didn't even know it was going to be on and happened to be channel surfing just as they were showing the pics. They were very grainy, black and white photos. Hard to see anything. She looked like she was sleeping. She was not mangeled or even bloody. But, I still don't think that it was a very sensitive thing for CBS to do. Anything for the ratings I suppose.....

 

[lunara]

thanx for the info :flower:
the pic circulating on Kazaa is gruesome...looks so real...i can't believe what some freaks would do

 

[Dennism]

PARIS (Reuters) - Britain's most senior police officer Monday inspected the site of the car crash that killed Princess Diana and pledged to look into the conspiracy theories it spawned.

London's Metropolitan police commissioner, Sir John Stevens, walked into the Paris road tunnel where Diana died along with her lover Dodi al Fayed and chauffeur Henri Paul. He spent around 30 minutes examining the scene of the crash.

Stevens also visited the Ritz Hotel in central Paris where the couple had been staying before racing off in their chauffeur-driven car with paparazzi photographers in hot pursuit.

"This is a very intricate investigation. Every single aspect of conspiracy theories and the like will be looked at by my team and then we will be reporting to the coroner," Stevens told reporters.

Diana's marriage to Britain's heir to the throne Prince Charles broke down in 1992 and later ended in divorce.

Dodi's father, Mohamed al Fayed, owner of exclusive London store Harrods, has alleged his son and Diana were murdered by British secret services because their relationship was embarrassing the royal household.

An inquiry by French authorities in 1999 ruled that the fatal crash was caused by Paul being drunk and driving too fast.

Stevens, who swapped his police uniform for a somber blue suit, rejected any notion that his visit was merely a public relations exercise. "I would say that's incredibly cynical," he said.

Stevens is conducting an investigation into the circumstances surrounding Diana's death at the request of Britain's Royal Coroner Michael Burgess, who accompanied him on the trip.

Stevens's investigating team could interview Prince Charles.

"If in fact there is a need to interview Prince Charles, as I've said from the beginning of this, working together with the French authorities, we will interview Prince Charles," he said. "That's a fact."

When asked whether he needed to interview Prince Charles, Stevens said: "We're still progressing this inquiry."

In January, Britain's Daily Mirror newspaper published a letter written by Diana before she died in which she said Charles was "planning an accident" to kill her. A spokesman for Prince Charles declined to comment at the time.

Stevens also met French investigators in charge of the initial French inquiry into the accident.

Burgess asked Stevens in January to carry out a full investigation into allegations that Diana's death was not an accident but the result of a plot.

 

[Dennism]

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Mohamed al Fayed, the father of the man killed with Princess Diana in a 1997 car crash, has sued CBS for emotional distress for a broadcast last week which broke a long-standing taboo by showing a photo of Diana as she lay dying.

Fayed's lawyer Fred Gaines said on Tuesday that a lawsuit claiming invasion of privacy and emotional distress was filed in Los Angeles late last week after CBS broadcast the picture of the injured princess taken immediately after the August 1997 fatal accident in Paris.

Gaines told Reuters Fayed's lawsuit could possibly be expanded to cover a charge of defamation against the network.

Viewers caught only a few seconds glimpse of a grainy black and white photo of Diana in the back of the car but the decision by "48 Hours Investigates" to show the picture caused outrage in Britain.

CBS said it believed the lawsuit was "meritless and we intend to vigorously defend ourselves."

Fayed's son Dodi, the divorced Princess Diana's then boyfriend, was also killed in the August 1997 Paris crash. Gaines said Fayed, the owner of London's posh Harrods department store, had been concerned that CBS also planned to broadcast photos of his dying son Dodi.

No picture of Dodi were broadcast in last Wednesday's program but Gaines said Fayed's lawsuit was filed anyway.

The program examined and knocked down a number of conspiracy theories put forward principally by Fayed, including his belief that Diana and Dodi were murdered because their relationship was an embarrassment to Britain's royal family.

"To the extent that it (the TV program) addressed Mohamed al Fayed's beliefs in a very skeptical manner, we find that to be inappropriate and we are considering our reaction to that. We are examining whether we have appropriate claims for defamation at this point," Gaines said.

Gaines said that even though photographs of Dodi were not shown on the CBS show, Fayed was extremely upset.

"He was also very close, as was Dodi, to Princess Diana ... and he was also very upset that her photograph was used," Gaines said.

A French report concluded that the crash was caused by drunk driving and speeding by driver Henri Paul, who was also killed. Britain opened an inquest this year into Diana's death that will look into the various conspiracy theories that it has spawned.

 

[maryshawn]

I happened upon a list of all the things Paul Burrell, Diana's "rock", "stole" from her home. First off, it's a joke. Yes, he should've returned the boys letters and other correspondence--but he was rushing as her family was busy shredding. But so many gifts are given to the royals, it is certainly not uncommon to give things to staff. Even Jackie Kennedy would clean out her things occasionally and give clothes she'd worn too often or didn't care for anymore to her secretary, dresser and friends.

What I found interesting was most of the purses' contents contained matches or lighters.....now, she didn't smoke so why would one always be in her bag? The only thing I can think of is that her boyfriend, Dr. Hasnat Khan, smoked and perhaps she included them for his cigarettes. This is trivial but interesting.....just like the story of Jackie Kennedy always carrying one saran wrapped dollar bill in her evening bags for luck. Carolyn Bessette Kennedy later gave it to Cindy Adams who'd been a friend of Jackie's.

I'm just thankful no one will ever publish the contents of my purses......mountains of receipts, lipsticks with no tops, more chapstick than one could ever use
......oh, and a starbucks card adn altoids, which are great when I can find them.

Mary Shawn

 

[sara1981]

HI Mary,

Im sure about Paul Burrell but he stole Princess Diana's estates about years ago he took Princess Diana's dress, work, etc.

but im sure you said about "boyfriend" but Princess Diana had many affairs since 1986 she had affair with army/ horse instructor, polo James Hewitt till 1990 they later she been transfed to many mans in her life like her mother did! because she Princess.

when i read articles in England because im American i love to read in England lots about Princess Diana and her sons, British Royal Family also but Paul Burrell who works for Princess Diana he been servant for Princess Diana since 1992 till 1997 when Diana's death.

they later after she died Paul Burrell makes published books to USA, England but I got that books but its really disagree about it many people not like him! you know that because he really means! I knew he really done he makes articles about Princess Diana and Prince William also but i really pissed off about articles! I would kept eyes of articles about Princess Diana's news when she died but i never met her.

the police asked to Prince William about his mother's estates because Paul Burrell stole his mother's estates but Prince William would knew about Paul Burrell! and Prince William really hated to add new book from Paul Burrell called Royal Duty.

if you like to read about Royal Duty but I dont like his book but he dont publishing!

Sara Boyce

 

[Yennie]

I read somewhere that even though Diana didn´t smoke, she didn´t mind when others, like family and friends, did. She had several ash trays (is it called that?!) at home and maybe thats also why she had matches in her bags?

 

[sara1981]

Originally posted by Yennie@May 10th, 2004 - 10:53 am
I read somewhere that even though Diana didn´t smoke, she didn´t mind when others, like family and friends, did. She had several ash trays (is it called that?!) at home and maybe thats also why she had matches in her bags?

Diana never smoke! she is healthy Princess! for long time! why you asked for it!

she had been matches purse since her marriage to Royals in 1981 till separate in 1992 and divorces but the designer chose favorite Princess because she was popular Princess.

she wanted matches purse with clothes she wanted it! and also shoes too!

im sure i never knew about she would be popular Princess since she dating Prince Charles because her 2 sisters dating Prince Charles before her.

Sara Boyce

 

[Yennie]

Sarah, I think you misunderstood me...

Diana never smoke! she is healthy Princess! for long time! why you asked for it!

If you read my message I wrote that she had astrays bacause her family and friends smoked and that she didn´t mind them doing it. I didn´t wrote she smoked herself.

she wanted matches purse with clothes she wanted it! and also shoes too!

I thought that maryshawn meant "matches" that you use to light a fire with? Or does it mean something else?

 

[sara1981]

Originally posted by Yennie@May 10th, 2004 - 3:51 pm
Sarah, I think you misunderstood me...

Diana never smoke! she is healthy Princess! for long time! why you asked for it!

If you read my message I wrote that she had astrays bacause her family and friends smoked and that she didn´t mind them doing it. I didn´t wrote she smoked herself.

she wanted matches purse with clothes she wanted it! and also shoes too!

I thought that maryshawn meant "matches" that you use to light a fire with? Or does it mean something else?

oh please!

im not kinda misunderstanding! i knew about Princess Diana alright! but she never smoke when she got happily married and she grow 2 sons and 1 who is future King is Prince William still!

you makes me mistakes?

Sara Boyce

 

[Elspeth]

The only thing I can think of is that her boyfriend, Dr. Hasnat Khan, smoked and perhaps she included them for his cigarettes.

I do hope Dr Khan isn't a smoker. I mean, I know that being a heart surgeon doesn't necessarily preclude a person from being a smoker, but it would be nice to think that he had more sense.

 

[Elspeth]

Im sure about Paul Burrell but he stole Princess Diana's estates about years ago he took Princess Diana's dress, work, etc.

Paul Burrell was acquitted on all charges. Legally that means he didn't steal anything of hers.

 

[Yennie]

im not kinda misunderstanding! i knew about Princess Diana alright! but she never smoke when she got happily married and she grow 2 sons and 1 who is future King is Prince William still!
you makes me mistakes?

You´re right Sarah, Diana never smoked (not that we know of anyway) I didnt said/wrote that.
I wrote that her FAMILY AND FRIENDS did. Thats why she had ashtrays... she didnt used them herself