Ken Wharfe, Princess Diana's final official bodyguard, said the late royal would still be alive if she had maintained her security detail with Scotland Yard, and that her decision to abandon elite protection in 1993 ultimately led to the fatal crash in Paris four years later.
Wharfe, who served as Diana's personal protection officer from 1988 to 1993 after working with Princes William and Harry, recalled a private meeting with the princess at Kensington Palace just weeks after he left her service. "Two or three weeks after my departure her private secretary telephoned and told me she wanted to see me at Kensington Palace," Wharfe said. "We had a very informal tea and biscuits and we reminisced on the good times."
During that meeting, Diana asked if he had any advice for her. "I said 'I don't know what you're about to do but I would urge you not to abandon Scotland Yard security,'" Wharfe recalled. "I acknowledged that on occasions they had been invasive but we kept her alive and kept her sense of humor where it should be and she listened."
Despite the warning, Diana cut ties with her Royal Protection Squad by the end of 1993. Less than four years later, she died in a car crash alongside Egyptian film producer Dodi Fayed and driver Henri Paul in the Pont de l'Alma tunnel in Paris. The only survivor, bodyguard Trevor Rees-Jones, had been wearing a seat belt.
"This was a road traffic accident that could and should have been avoided," Wharfe said. "It was an accident because the security lacked the professionalism and experience of Scotland Yard. They allowed a man who was nearly four times over the drink drive limit to drive that car in which case an accident was inevitable."
Wharfe said the tragic outcome may have been preventable if someone had insisted that all passengers wear seat belts. "The only person who survived that accident was the bodyguard Rees-Jones who was able to affix his seat belt. If only he had told Diana and Dodi to affix theirs, then perhaps they may well have survived as well," he said.
In 1997, Wharfe was responsible for security during Diana's funeral. He was awarded membership in the Royal Victorian Order the following year for his service to the Queen. However, his 2002 book, Diana: Closely Guarded Secret, which detailed private aspects of Diana's life, drew backlash from senior police officials and royal sources, some of whom viewed the publication as a breach of the confidential relationship between the royal family and their protection officers.
Wharfe has also reflected on what guidance Diana might offer today, particularly to Prince Harry amid his public break with the royal family. "She would have been heartbroken over the feuding," Wharfe told RadarOnline. "Her warning would be: 'Don't let this family split tear you apart-find a way back to your brother.'"
He added that Diana would be alarmed by Harry's withdrawal from royal life and his current legal fights over security in the U.K. "She'd be saying, 'Keep yourself safe, Harry-don't take risks,'" Wharfe said. Diana's own experiences with paparazzi and inadequate protection, he believes, would have shaped her warnings.
"She'd tell him, 'You're stronger together-don't lose your family,'" Wharfe said, reflecting on her efforts to keep William and Harry close during their childhood. "Diana would tell Harry, 'Use your platform for good, like I did,'" he added, referencing her charitable legacy, from AIDS awareness to anti-landmine campaigns.
