In 1995, Princess Diana gave a shockingly raw interview about her life and all things royal to BBC show Panorama. Now, 25 years later, the interview is making the news once again. Diana's brother Charles Spencer has accused interviewer Martin Bashir of falsifying documents to allegedly coerce Diana into appearing on the program. The BBC pledged to do a full investigation into the matter, and Prince William released a statement saying he hoped the investigation would get to the truth of the matter. But initial findings seemingly confirm that Diana was not coerced.
As the investigation plays out, it's worth taking a look back at the infamous interview. It remains one of the most honest displays from any royal ever, as Diana opened up about her mental health, the state of her marriage, and what she really thought about the royal family. If we thought that Meghan Markle's tearful interview about not being OK after Archie's birth was raw, it's got nothing on Diana's interview.
Here are 15 of the biggest revelations from the program.
Trigger warning: Diana addressed some sensitive topics including depression, self-harm, and eating disorders.
Diana Was Relieved She Produced an Heir on Her First Try
It wasn't until 2011 that succession law was changed to give female heirs the same rights to the throne that male heirs had. So the pressure was on in the '80s for Diana to produce a male child to ascend to the throne after Prince Charles. Fortunately, her first child was a boy, which took the pressure off. She called William's birth an "enormous relief," adding, "I felt the whole country was in labor with me."
Opening Up About Postpartum Depression
At the time, she called it "post-natal depression," and it was rarely talked about — especially for a royal. "You'd wake up in the morning feeling you didn't want to get out of bed, you felt misunderstood, and just very, very low in yourself," Diana described. "It gave everybody a wonderful new label — Diana's unstable and Diana's mentally unbalanced. And unfortunately that seems to have stuck on and off over the years."
Her ability to talk about a difficult topic no doubt helped countless others struggling with similar issues.
Diana Used to Self-Harm
Another "taboo" topic that she was honest about during the interview was how she'd self-harmed by cutting herself during bouts of her serious depression.
"I did inflict upon myself. I didn't like myself, I was ashamed because I couldn't cope with the pressures," Diana said. "I just hurt my arms and my legs; and I work in environments now where I see women doing similar things and I'm able to understand completely where they're coming from."
And She Was Bulimic
The most recent season of The Crown portrays Diana's struggle with bulimia, which she said in her BBC interview she dealt with for several years.
"It's a repetitive pattern which is very destructive to yourself," she admitted. The National Eating Disorders Association credits Diana's honesty about the topic with helping many other people to feel comfortable talking about the issue and seeking help for it.
Prince Charles Wanted Separate Work Events
Diana speculated that her fame was eclipsing Prince Charles and making him feel like no one paid attention to him at events. So he requested they start doing all their work separately, "which was a bit sad for me, because I quite liked the company," Diana said. "But, there again, I didn't have the choice."
Diana Knew Charles Was Cheating
The interviewer asked if Diana was aware that Charles was carrying on a relationship with Camilla Parker Bowles during their marriage.
"Yes I was, but I wasn't in a position to do anything about it," Diana said. She added that it was "pretty devastating" to learn that her husband was in love with another woman.
She Blamed Camilla for the Marriage Struggles
When she explained her separation from Charles to young Prince William, Diana placed half the blame on Camilla. "There were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded," she said, before adding that the media pressure played a significant role in their split as well. The cheating certainly didn't help, though.
Diana Admitted to Cheating on Charles
Charles was not the only one unfaithful in their marriage. As their relationship began to fracture, Diana turned to outside sources for the love she wasn't getting from Charles. One such person she turned to was James Hewitt, with whom Diana admitted she had cheated. "I adored him. Yes, I was in love with him," she said.
She Wanted Her Marriage To Work
Despite all of their struggles, Diana didn't want to separate from Charles. Her parents had divorced when she was younger, and she wanted to avoid that same fate. "I desperately wanted it to work, I desperately loved my husband and I wanted to share everything together, and I thought that we were a very good team," she said.
They Had to Meet With the Prime Minister Before Separating
When the duo decided to take a break from each other, it wasn't as simple as making that choice between themselves. Diana said that they had to involve lawyers, Queen Elizabeth, and even Britain's prime minister before they could go through with things. And that was just for a trial separation. The divorce conversation must have been even more complicated.
She Heard Her Separation Announced on the Radio
Obviously Diana knew that she and Charles were separated, but she didn't know when it was going to be announced to the public. She found out when she happened to be listening to the radio. "It was just very, very sad," Diana remembered of the moment. "Really sad. The fairy tale had come to an end."
She Collaborated on a Tell-All Book
In 1992, Andrew Morton released a tell-all book about Diana called Diana: Her True Story. It was such an intimate portrait of her life, that many wondered if Diana had directly collaborated with the author. During her 1995 interview, Diana revealed that she had. "I was at the end of my tether. I was desperate," she said, adding that she wanted the book to help people better understand her side of the story and also encourage women in similarly bad marriages to stand up for themselves.
She Thought the Royal Family Feared Her Power
People may have thought that young Diana would have been a follower in the royal family, but she was anything but. And the princess believed that her power and strength made the rest of the royals feel threatened. "I think every strong woman in history has had to walk down a similar path, and I think it's the strength that causes the confusion and the fear," Diana said. "'Why is she strong? Where does she get it from? Where is she taking it?'"
She Didn't Think Charles Would Be a Good King
Very politely, Diana shaded Charles' ability to be king, saying that he preferred the freedom of being Prince of Wales. "Being king would be a little bit more suffocating. And because I know the character I would think that the top job, as I call it, would bring enormous limitations to him, and I don't know whether he could adapt to that."
Guess we'll have to wait and see how it goes if he ever does get that top job.
Why She Thought She'd Never Be Queen
At the time of the interview, Diana and Charles were separated but not officially divorced. However, technicalities aside, she knew she would never be queen.
"The establishment that I married into … they have decided that I'm a non-starter because I do things differently, because I don't go by a rule book, because I lead from the heart, not the head," Diana said. "Albeit that's got me into trouble in my work, I understand that. But someone's got to go out there and love people and show it."
Instead of being queen of the country, Diana said she'd like to be "queen of people's hearts" — which she very much remains today.
