Princess Diana’s butler has claimed she always knew that he was gay before he came out because of how well he chose her outfits and jewels.
Paul Burrell, 59, originally from Grassmoor, Derbyshire, came out in March 2017 but believes his sexuality was ‘implicit’ in his relationship with the late Diana when he served her.
Appearing on Good Morning Britain on Friday, Paul said the Princess was comfortable with his sexuality because she never ‘saw sexuality or race’ in people.
He revealed how he kept a secret doll hidden in a shoe box when he was growing up, which he likens to keeping his sexuality hidden.
Paul served Diana from 1987 until her untimely death in 1997, and confessed he should have had therapy as soon as she died.
He will appear on Channel 5’s In Therapy to talk about his life with Diana to Mandy Saligari, a relationship expert.
Paul Burrell, 59, revealed Diana knew he was gay before he came out in March 2017
Paul said: ‘We never had that discussion but it was implicit in everything we did. I chose her dresses, I did wonderful flower arrangements. I chose her jewels – I was her best friend. I think she understood my sexuality.’
He didn’t come out as gay until March this year, announcing that he was to marry his partner Graham Cooper, 58, just nine months after divorcing his wife of 32 years, Maria.
Paul struggled with his sexuality whilst growing up in a mining community in Derbyshire, admitting that he kept things hidden from his father.
He said: ‘I was the son of a coal miner in the North of England, not allowed to express his sexuality. Do you know I had a dolly in a shoebox and I hid it in the gas cupboard?’
He started working with Prince Charles and Diana in 1987 and stayed with until she died in 1997
‘My mother knew but that was my secret, you see. That was my sexuality I’d hidden away. I never realised that.’
Despite coming out almost twenty years after Diana died, Paul admits he enjoyed keeping secrets with the people around him.
‘I think in my world, in my life, to gain someone’s trust, to gain that bond, I learned that we could trade off. If you look after me, I’ll look after you and that’s the way it went,’ he said.
‘And that’s the way it went all my life with my wise, with the queen with my mother, with Diana. It was the same pattern.’
Paul, who has written four books about his time working for the royal family, says he should have had therapy as soon as Diana died.
Paul said he needed therapy as soon as Diana died but no one was looking after him
‘I needed it 20 years ago, really. I mean no one said to me “Do you need help?”. I had this huge burden of looking after this icon of our times in her death. I sat with her the night before she was buried all alone and talked to her, no one said “Paul needs help, let’s get him some help. Are you ok?” Nobody said that but I needed it then,’ he confessed.
‘Going into therapy for me with Mandy, she brought out things that I never realised. She brought out my sexuality and why I kept it a secret and she said to me “This is why you had such a strong relationship with Diana. This is why because you’ve attached yourself to strong women all your life” and I had and I never realised that.
‘Did it ruin my life? No I am blessed! What an incredible, unique, inspirational human being the princess was an I was her friend.’
Diana wasn’t homophobic because she never ‘saw’ people for their sexuality, according to Paul.
He explained: ‘She never saw sexuality in anyone she never saw race in anyone, she never saw a colour in anyone. She saw people and she saw me as a person.
He believes Diana would have accepted his sexuality because she didn’t ‘see’ sexuality
‘She said I’ve got the ability to look inside you and see who you are and she liked what she saw. That’s why is stayed so long.’
Good Morning Britain presenter Richard Madeley condemned recent documentaries about Diana’s life, particularly Channel 4’s Diana: In Her Own Words.
He said: ‘I think it was disgusting actually for her co,comments about her sexual relationship with Charles and their sexual habits – it was utterly outrageous. That was crossing not one line but about ten.’
Paul insisted that he wasn’t exploiting Diana’s death, saying: ‘But to tell you how inspirational she was and how unique she was and how wonderful she was, I don’t think that’s crossing the line.’