The Truth About How Princess Diana Wasn't Going To Be Influenced By The Royal Family

When Princess Diana married Prince Charles in 1981, the 20-year-old was inducted into the powerful British royal family. Along with her new regal duties and attempting to navigate the lifestyle as a young woman, she was also faced with intense media attention — particularly when it came to the tabloids, according to The Independent. As Diana's brother Charles Spencer said shortly after her death, "I don't think she ever understood why her genuinely good intentions were sneered at by the media, why there appeared to be a permanent quest on their behalf to bring her down. It is baffling." 

Just after her heavily covered wedding, Diana and Charles sat down with Andrew Gardner from ITV for an interview about their future together. However, everyone knows now what was to come. Charles continued his affair with Camilla Parker-Bowles during his marriage to Diana. The two royals would eventually divorce in 1996, after several years of tension. A year after separating from the prince, Diana tragically passed away in a car accident in Paris. Despite her death, Diana's spirit and revolutionary style of tackling royal duties greatly touched those who encountered her and continues to carry on across generations. Though Diana influenced countless people who came after her, she didn't let royalty influence her personality.

During a new clip unearthed for CNN's docuseries "Diana," those who interacted with Princess Diana early on into her marriage to Prince Charles and induction into the royal family are speaking to her character. Specifically, Angela Rippon, who was present at their newlywed ITV interview in 1981 alongside newscaster Andrew Gardner, reflects on the sit-down and the marriage situation four decades later.

According to People, Rippon taps into what witnessing youthful Diana was really like, one unaffected by royal stressors. "There was something more to Diana, something that was not the marshmallow or the Play-Doh that was going to be molded into what they [the royals] wanted," Rippon said. "Running through all of it was a backbone, a knowledge of her own self." Rippon also shared an anecdote immediately following the interview when a courier came in requesting to take a photo of Diana, to which she firmly responded, "No, not now." For this observer, that brief interaction impressed her and showed her exactly who Diana was.