Who is Peter Settelen? Princess Diana’s voice coach whose video tapes are featured in Channel 4 documentary
The shy royal had been introduced to Settelen to practise speaking in public
NEVER-BEFORE-SEEN footage revealing intimate confessions made by Princess Diana are due to be aired in a new Channel 4 documentary.
The controversial tapes were filmed by Diana's voice coach Peter Settelen, but who is he? Here's the lowdown...
Who is Peter Settelen?
The actor Peter Settelen was voice coach to Princess Diana during the early 1990s.
The shy royal had been introduced to Settelen to practise speaking in public as she increasingly appeared independently of Prince Charles.
It was also part of preparation for her famous Panorama interview with Martin Bashir in which she alluded to Charles' mistress and current wife Camilla Parker-Bowles by saying "there were three of us" in her marriage.
During their sessions Diana would reportedly speak about her marriage, a security guard she believed had been “bumped off” and her husband’s relationship with Camilla.
Settelen had appeared in Flambards, Pride and Prejudice and A Bridge Too Far in the 1970s and 1980s.
What are the Princess Diana tapes?
The footage, never intended to be shown in public, was filmed during voice coaching sessions held at Kensington Palace in the early 1990s.
The tapes had been in Diana's possession and following her death were found in the home of ex-royal butler Paul Burrell, reports .
The content of the recordings was considered so sensitive it was reportedly not used in a court case against Burrell, which later collapsed.
Diana's family insisted the tapes should be handed over to them but following a lengthy battle they were returned to Settelen in 2004.
A lot of the footage has never been seen publicly, but excerpts have been screened in America and it is understood Diana spoke candidly about the state of her marriage and the pressure to live up to her royal image.
Why are the tapes being broadcast now?
The tapes have never been broadcast in Britain but excerpts were screened in America after being sold to NBC in 2004.
At the time Tory MP Sir Teddy Taylor Tory asked broadcasters not to use the tapes in Prince William or Harry's lifetimes.
The BBC reportedly bought the rights to screen a few minutes of the footage in 2007, but the controversial plans were shelved.
Channel 4 will show extracts from the footage in a new documentary called, Diana, In Her Own Words.
Ralph Lee, Channel 4's deputy chief creative officer & head of factual, who commissioned the film, told : "The tapes, which show a relaxed and off-duty Diana, are hugely illuminating about her personality, humour and charm.
"Combined with historical context and interviews with her closest confidants, this film provides a nuanced, multilayered portrait of the most famous woman in the world and a mother who has shaped the future line of the royal family."
William and Harry have spoken at great length about memories of their mother in the ITV documentary Diana, Our Mother, Her Life and Legacy.
