Diana and Charles’ 1981 wedding was quickly dubbed a fairytale but within just a few short years the couple had become incredibly unhappy. Both the Prince and Princess of Wales turned to extra-marital affairs to find comfort away from the bitterness of their marriage. However, the public were not aware of how their relationship had deteriorated until Diana and Charles announced their separation in 1992 and officially divorced in 1996.
Netflix’s fictionalised series, ‘The Crown’, is set to release its latest series next month and royal fans are excitedly anticipating a dramatic re-telling of the couple’s failed love story.
Yet, their well-known fallout could have been completely different if they had met under different circumstances.
Editor-in-chief of Majesty magazine, Ingrid Seward, explained: “If Charles and Diana met each other after they had both been married to someone else it might have worked.
“Because there was a magic there, really, but it was just she was too young and he was too emotionally young.
“And he had just never met anyone like Diana who was so demanding.
Princess Diana and Prince Charles photographed in 1985 (Image: Getty)
Diana and Charles’ 1981 wedding was considered a fairytale event (Image: Getty)
“She was basically so insecure that she needed love and attention all the time and his role prevented him from giving her.”
The Princess of Wales used to struggle with the stiff upper lip mentality which was embedded into the Royal Family, and would go against protocol by pouring her heart out to the public.
But, when Lady Diana Spencer first started dating Charles at the tender age of 19, she was considered the perfect match for him.
His great-uncle Lord Mountbatten had always pushed Charles to choose a blue-blooded virgin who was an Anglican and who would be a “source of inspiration” to her husband.
Diana was indeed a virgin from an aristocratic family which had always been closely aligned with the royals — and it was clear the two had a bond from the start.
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Diana and Charles on their honeymoon (Image: Getty)
Howard Hodgson explained in his book, ‘Charles — The Man Who Will Be King’, how Diana seemed to understand him so well at first.
Mr Hodgson explained: “When Diana sat before him and talked of his great-uncle [late Lord Mountbatten] and her feelings for the Prince’s pain, it is without a doubt that Charles saw immediately that here was another ideal example of a Mountbatten bride — one who might become the soulmate that he had so far been denied.”
Speaking on the 2002 documentary, ‘The Queen: A Remarkable Life’, Ms Seward added that the Queen also had “the highest hopes” for the Princess of Wales, initially, and was particularly fond of how Diana was a “hands-on mother”.
Mr Seward explained the monarch was then particularly devastated when the Wales’ marriage began to fall apart.
The royal author said the Queen Mother had comforted her, and told her: “Darling, you haven’t gone wrong, it is just a different era and it is hard for the children to bring people from the outside into that very stiff world of royalty.”
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A romantic timeline of Charles and Diana’s relationship (Image: Express.co.uk/Getty)
Dian and Charles’ relationship quickly fell apart (Image: Getty)
Many have since noted that Diana was so young when she joined the royal frontline, it would have been a complete shock to her system to be thrust into a global spotlight — another reason why, if they had met later in life, their relationship may have worked.
Additionally, Charles’ love for his former flame Camilla Parker Bowles, is thought to have overshadowed much of their marriage, especially as they resumed their relationship in 1986.
The Prince and Princess of Wales also showed they had a natural affinity towards one another after their divorce was settled.
Mr Hodgson explained their relationship “had steadily improved” and Charles took to “dropping into Kensington Palace for tea from time to time”.
Diana and Charles’ relationship became more cordial after they officially divorced (Image: Getty)
He added: “On one such occasion, he reminded her what great legs she had, and this pleased her so much that she was still telling friends about it days later.”
Charles even invited her to accompany him to Hong Kong, which she seriously considered before her tragic death in 1997.
‘Charles — The Man Who Will Be King’ by Howard Hodgson was published by John Blake in 2007 and is available here.
