Once considered her close confidante, Princess Diana’s former aide is recalling how their relationship broke apart. Patrick Jephson previously served as the late Princess’s private secretary. He was considered a stabilizing force for her during a difficult time in her life.
Unfortunately, things between Diana and Patrick took a turn when a BBC journalist convinced her that Patrick and other loyal aides were spying on her.
“It is chilling to re-run those events and feel that Diana was seeing me as the enemy within,” Patrick recalled. This was detailed in the new book Dianarama: Deception, Entrapment, Cover-Up: The Betrayal of Princess Diana.
Princess Diana’s former aide Patrick Jephson felt a wedge due to Martin Bashir
From the late 80s to the early 90s, Patrick was perhaps Diana’s most trusted ally, protecting her from all the outside noise and rumors. That all changed when the Princess agreed to do an interview with BBC journalist Martin Bashir for the program Panorama. The journalist forged bank documents to gain access to Diana and secure an interview.
Those fake documents allege that Patrick had been spying on her. “It’s inhumane, cruel and calculated,” Patrick told People about Martin’s manipulation. Diana was drawn to Martin by her brother Charles Spencer, who the journalist also manipulated. It came during a time when Diana was living amid suspicion and intrusion.
By 1997, in the latter stages of her life, Patrick claims that Diana placed her trust in people who were not capable of looking after her. He says that had he been running her program, there would have been appropriate oversight of her fateful Paris visit.
The Princess died in a car accident in the French capital on August 31, 1997. Her driver was fleeing the paparazzi at the time. Patrick left his post as Diana’s secretary in January 1996.
The infamous Diana interview with Martin has been called “mafia-style trickery” by author Andy Webb, a former BBC reporter. His book Dianarama is now available.
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