Princess Diana's Bodyguard Reveals How Accurate Spencer Really Is
"Spencer" is the latest film to be released about Princess Diana's life. The movie takes place over the course of one weekend — three days, to be exact — and attempts to present what the Princess of Wales was going through when her she realized that her marriage to Prince Charles had totally fallen apart. "The blending of her anguish, real and imagined, is intended to keep the audience uneasy and it succeeds," reads Roger Ebert's review, in part. Actor Kristen Stewart has taken on the role, which is likely to earn her an Oscar nomination — her very first — according to Entertainment Weekly.
And while the movie is receiving rave reviews, for the most part, some royal watchers can't help but wonder just how accurate the story being told really is. It's important to keep in mind that this particular dramatization can't possibly be 100% authentic, given the fact that Diana herself wasn't involved, but those closest to her have weighed in on just how good of a job "Spencer" did to capture the true feelings of the People's Princess. Keep reading to find out what Diana's former bodyguard had to say about the film's accuracy.
Some parts of Spencer aren't accurate at all
Princess Diana's former bodyguard Ken Wharfe spoke with People magazine about "Spencer" and explained his recollection of what Diana had been going through on that fateful weekend — and how accurately it was portrayed in the new film about her life. "It was purgatory for her," Wharfe told the outlet. And while that much may have been clear in the film, there are some parts of the movie that didn't quite nail it. For example, there is a scene in which Diana opens up to her dresser, something that Wharfe says likely never happened. "From my experience, Diana never once confided in her dressers," he said.
According to Slate, there are additional inaccuracies in the film, such as scenes where Kristen Stewart's Diana is decked out in Chanel post-divorce, which she actually never did. In addition, Queen Elizabeth is portrayed to be very "cold" toward Diana in the film, however, it's believed that the queen actually had "retained some affection for Diana" after her split from Prince Charles. Though there seems to be some inaccuracies, albeit fairly minute, the film still received high praise from Wharfe. "Out of all the people who have played Diana over the past 10 years, [Kristen Stewart is] the closest to her. She managed to perfect her mannerisms," he told People.