In a dramatic encounter that would be forever remembered as one of the most shocking moments in royal history, Princess Diana spoke six straight-to-the-heart words to Camilla Parker Bowles: “Don’t treat me like an idiot.” This happened at Lady Annabel Goldsmith’s party in February 1989. Things had come to a point where Princess Diana couldn’t take the fake smiles and pretending anymore about her marriage to Prince Charles.
It’s a well-known fact that Charles had started seeing Camilla again, which made it even more hurtful for Diana. This situation was talked about in a book by Andrew Morton called Diana: Her True Story – In Her Own Words.
Even though Diana had tried to ignore it for years, the situation finally became so evident that she couldn’t pretend anymore. So, she went straight to Camilla, aka the woman who was having an affair with her man, and told her all about the pain she was feeling. “I’m sorry I’m in the way,” Diana supposedly said.
“I obviously am in the way and it must be hell for both of you, but I do know what is going on,” she admitted.
Camilla’s reply, which was tone-deaf and dismissive, just added fuel to the fire.
As Morton recounted, Camilla had basically said to Diana, “You’ve got everything you ever wanted (…) What more could you want?” But Diana’s pain was so raw, and she summed it up by saying that all she wanted was to have her husband.
This Royal Rivalry Shocked The Monarchy
Back then, everyone adored the picture-perfect couple, the Prince of Wales and his stunning young wife. They seemed like they’d just stepped out of a fairy tale. But in reality, things weren’t so rosy behind the scenes. Princess Diana’s marriage was falling apart because of cheating, royal drama, and feeling almost entirely alone emotionally.
And according to what Morton wrote, the day she faced this betrayal was absolutely terrible for her. It reminds us of that heartbreaking time in her 1995 Panorama interview when she famously said, “There were three of us in this marriage.”
Princess Diana Panorama Interview – 1997 BBC.
There were three of us, in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded. pic.twitter.com/peh6LqitPu
— Modern History 𝕏 (@modernhistory) January 4, 2025
Surprisingly, Princess Diana later said that Camilla wasn’t the only one at fault.
RELATED: Princess Diana Described Camilla as ‘Loyal and Discreet’ Amid the Infamous Royal Scandal
A royal insider named Ingrid Seward shared that right before Diana passed away, she told her, “It wasn’t Camilla that ruined our marriage, it was the people around Charles.” This statement was a bit confusing, but it suggested the kind of dysfunction that both Diana and, later, Harry, talked about happening with the Royal Family.
Princess Diana’s Honesty Lives On
After keeping their relationship under wraps for a while, Charles and Camilla finally decided to go public in 1999 and tied the knot in 2005. Meanwhile, Diana’s honest words from those 1991 tapes still hit home with a lot of people.
She was just yearning to live a regular life, to wander around Paris without everyone staring and judging her.
princess diana in the crown
princess diana in saint tropez, august 1997 pic.twitter.com/RMbyt9HIiY— e🐅 (@divineysl) November 16, 2023
And it seems like her son, Prince Harry, now married to Meghan Markle, is taking after her, being open and honest about his feelings of being estranged from the royal family in the interviews he’s been giving lately.
Princess Diana’s short statement was really about self-respect, honesty, and the deep hurt of being quieted in a life that looks perfect on the outside but feels like a fancy prison on the inside.
