LONDON: A new book on the late Princess Diana is stirring fresh debate after claiming the royal sent secret Valentine’s Day cards to Prince Andrew as a teenager.
Royal biographer Catherine Mayer makes the claim in her upcoming book, “Divide and Rule: Royal Women and Their Battles”. According to Mayer, a school friend told her that Diana mailed Andrew Valentine cards “every year until she was about 15 or 16”.
Mayer said the detail caught her off guard. In a recent interview she called it “new information” she hadn’t come across in earlier research.
The book also says Diana later introduced Andrew to her friend and cousin Sarah Ferguson. That introduction, Mayer writes, led to their relationship. Ferguson herself mentioned the same story in an old interview, saying Diana had set them up and spoken highly of Andrew.
Princess Diana married then-Prince Charles, now King Charles III, in 1981. She died in a car crash in Paris in 1997.
The claims have already picked up traction online, with royal watchers debating what the cards might reveal about Diana’s early years at court.
Last year, Prince Harry attended a star-studded event in Nottingham and made headlines for donating £1.1 million to UK charity giant BBC Children in Need. Following the donation announcement, the public was told by both the royal and the press that he had given out money from his “personal wealth”.
But as this new report shows, that simply isn’t the case as they’ve uncovered the real source of the cash. The Secret Link to Princess Diana’s Charity The £1.1 million cash, reported to have come from Prince Harry, actually originated from a different source altogether.
According to the recent investigation report, it came from the Glen Beg Foundation, a charity strongly connected to money raised through the Duke’s late mother Princess Diana’s estate and legacy funds.
While it’s positive that the donation made its way to a much needed place, there are now people being critical about why the contribution was presented as coming from Harry’s ‘personal’ pocket. Some have labelled the Duke of Sussex as taking personal credit for a donation that essentially transferred family trusts to a charity instead of the Duke’s own earnings.
Why is this important for the Sussex brand? Following the couple’s step down from senior royal life and their move to California, Harry and Meghan have built their reputation on their global brand and being financially independent with their charity Archewell.
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The latest revelation can also be seen as damaging their reputation – suggesting they presented the cash to improve Prince Harry’s public image back home amid challenging times between the UK public and the royals. As of yet, the Duke of Sussex or his representatives have not publicly addressed the new report and neither has The Glen Beg Foundation.