Diana would visit me to wash dishes, says Sleep

DIANA, Princess of Wales would go to Wayne Sleep’s flat to wash his dishes and take a “break” from her life, the dancer has claimed.

Sleep, who famously danced with the Princess of Wales to Billy Joel’s Uptown Girl on stage at the Royal Opera House in 1985, revealed that she would visit him for respite from her life at the time.

In an interview on BBC Radio 3’s Private Passions on Sunday, Sleep said: “The shoes came off at my flat, she’d do the dishes, it would be fun and we’d giggle. I think she didn’t come to me so much for the serious part that was going on in her life at the time, and things were moving so fast there, I think she just came to me for a break.”

The former ballet dancer discussed their famous dance routine, which was depicted in season four of The Crown, and the bond they shared afterwards. At the time, Sleep was the best-known dancer in Britain and had spent several years as a lead with the Royal Ballet. He said that they were able to keep their performance a secret by “going to different venues all the time”.

“I don’t think Charles even knew about it,” he said, adding: “Her detective was the only one who knew, Anne Beckwith-smith [her lady-in-waiting], five of us, me, Diana, and Alan, who was my coach.”