See full version: Princess Diana Said to Attempt Suicide 5 Times
British newspapers printed allegations that Princess Diana tried to commit suicide five times in despair over her marriage to Prince Charles, and Buckingham Palace on Sunday blamed a newspaper circulation war for the media frenzy.
A Buckingham Palace spokesman said: “We are not prepared to say how he is reacting or how she is reacting. It is not for us to keep a circulation war going with comments one way or another, because that is what it is all about.” more
Morton’s book quotes friends of Diana, who is 12 years Charles’ junior, as saying she has been ill with depression and an eating disorder during the decade-old marriage and was also jealous of his friendship with another woman. [links]
Tragically, the women’s newfound friendship came to a premature end with Diana’s death in Paris on Aug. 31, 1997, at 36.
But Diana may have been using Raine as a pawn.
The fraught relationship between troubled Diana and larger-than-life socialite Raine is the focus of the film “Princess Diana’s ‘Wicked’ Stepmother,” premiering on the Smithsonian Channel Monday.
Raine visited Burrell at Kensington Palace the night he returned from France with Diana’s body. “She cried and held my hand and said, ‘What are we going to do now?'” said the butler. “She was devastated.”
According to Burrell, things took a surprising turn during the last three years of Diana’s life, as the two women actually reconciled. Raine, newly married to French Count Jean-Francois de Chambrun, started writing to her former stepdaughter. here
“Diana mellowed as she got older, and they were quite similar characters,” Junor said. [links]
Princess Anne posed inside a reception room at Gatcombe Park
A second photo of Anne gave a closer look at the stairs, showing that it has white wainscoting running down either side, a black steel bannister with wooden railings, and burnt orange walls. There is also a selection of framed photos positioned on the wall. here
It features cream tiles on the floor, white walls, and a selection of dark oak furniture as seen in the background, including a dresser at one side, and a bookcase and shelving unit at the back. Princess Anne sat on a gold gilded chair upholstered in cream. It looks as though the room is designed as an open-plan space, with a staircase leading upstairs seen at one side. more
According to Burrell, things took a surprising turn during the last three years of Diana’s life, as the two women actually reconciled. Raine, newly married to French Count Jean-Francois de Chambrun, started writing to her former stepdaughter. here
“They were strong to the core — survivors,” Diana’s former butler, Paul Burrell, told The Post. “They suffered adversity and tragedy which brought them together in the end.”
John recovered to proudly walk Diana down the aisle at her wedding to Prince Charles in 1981. Raine, meanwhile, was banished to a seat at the back of St. Paul’s Cathedral. here
Raine Spencer alongside Princess Diana during Earl John Spencer’s funeral at St. Mary the Virgin Church. Alamy Stock Photo [links]
Princess Diana talks with her stepmother Countess Raine Spencer Tim Graham/Getty Images