HOT AND BOTHERED ON THAT LAST HOLIDAY

CHARLES RAE, FORMER ROYAL CORRESPONDENT

‘In July, 1997, Diana arrived with William, then 15, and Harry, 12, in Parc de St Tropez, southern France. She was staying with the then Harrods boss Mohammed Al-Fayed and his wife Heini at their holiday home, Castle de St Therese.

‘The home has only one access point giving a good view – from the sea. With colleagues from other newspapers, we hired a boat and set off. We came to our usual agreement with Diana’s aides that in return for a photo opportunity, they’d largely be left alone. Diana, in a leopardprint swimsuit, and the boys were soon zipping around on jet skis. I was over the moon with the show. William and Harry made sharp turns so we’d get a soaking. It was all very good-humoured.

‘After 30 minutes they all disappeared, then I spotted Diana on the balcony. She was on her phone, giving someone a roasting, one hand flailing around like a windmill. She ended the call, threw the mobile down onto a sunbed and marched down to a speedboat, climbed on with her bodyguard and roared out to us. Diana was not happy. She demanded why the three other boats dotted around were there. I told her they were photographers from European outlets, and one boat was full of tourists. I said she’d been criticised for being with Al-Fayed, who was at the centre of the Tory MP cash-for-questions scandal. But she replied, “Mr Al-Fayed was my father’s best friend. Strictly speaking I’m on holiday with his wife. I hoped to keep the holiday quiet.” We asked her, then, why come to St Tropez, a hotbed for the paparazzi? I said, “You must have known you’d be spotted.” Diana said, “I know I have a role to play but I have to protect my boys.”

‘Before she left she dropped a bombshell. “You are going to get a big surprise with the next thing I do,” she said. We tried to get her to elaborate, but she shrugged her shoulders and roared away. Those 14 words haunt me to this day, trying to work out what she meant.’