Shadows of a princess: Diana, Princess of Wales, 1987-1996 : an intimate account by her private secretary - Hardcover

Jephson, P D

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0007113587 ISBN 13: 9780007113583

Publisher: Harper Collins, 2000

Synopsis

An explosive account of the life of Diana, the late Princess of Wales, from the man who was by her side throughout the most turbulent period of her life. In 1981, Lady Diana Spencer was seen by many as the salvation of the hidebound Windsor line. As the beautiful, modest, virginal wife of the future King Charles III, she seemed the perfect face for a 21st century Royal family. But Diana didn't follow the script. Instead she brought a revolution. Twenty years later the comforting illusion of Royalty as we knew it has gone forever. Diana is dead, the Windsors marginalised and a chastened Prince faces the dilemma of presenting a very different consort to his people. What went wrong? Since her death many people have come forward claiming to know the true story about Diana, in truth the reality is known by virtually none. Patrick Jephson was Diana's closest aide and adviser during her years of greatest public fame and deepest personal crisis. He witnessed the disintegration of her marriage to Prince Charles and the negotiation of the royal divorce. He assisted her as she tried to establish a new life for herself, independent from the Royal Family. Constantly on call, whether on duty or off, he not only organized her official life, but was increasingly drawn into the turmoil of her personal life. Diana will now never appoint a biographer and a formal history may never be commissioned. "Shadows of a Princess" goes further than any sanitized offical record, were one ever to be permitted. It reveals the day to day life of a private Diana whose behaviour was in stark contrast to her saint-like public image. Rooted in unique first hand experience, it is an authoritative, balanced account of one of the world's most famous and tragic women.

About this title

About the Author:

Patrick Jephson was born and raised in Ireland. After studying Political Science at Cambridge, he served for ten years in the Royal Navy. Selected as equerry to the Princess of Wales in 1987, he later became her first - and only - private secretary. His resignation in 1996, after her Panorama interview, made headline news. Shadows of a Princess is his first book.

Review:

"Never has so senior a servant of the Royal Family decided to reveal his secrets and rarely has one witnessed such turbulent times." The Times "Mr. Jephson was a witness to significant events in recent royal history, he is in a position to reveal the truth." Daily Express "There was nothing in her life Jephson didn't know about." The Sunday Times

About this edition

• Publisher: Harper Collins
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0007113587
• ISBN 13: 9780007113583
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 398