Princess Diana Had a Crush on Ex-Prince Andrew Before Ill-Fated Marriage to King Charles, Author Claims

Princess Diana reportedly had a crush on Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor before she ultimately wed King Charles.

According to the monarch's biographer Catherine Mayer, the late Princess of Wales had a fondness for the disgraced ex-Duke of York, 66, back in the day.

In her latest book about the women of the British royal family, Divide & Rule, Mayer explained how Diana sent Andrew a Valentine’s Day card “anonymously, of course” every year until she was about 16 years old.

“I was quite startled when I found that out,” Mayer told The Telegraph on Tuesday, June 16. “That was new news.”

"I was shocked to discover Princess Diana fancied Andrew," she went on. “I ended up feeling incredibly sorry for Diana."

“I understand how she made the mistake of thinking she could find happiness within the institution. I think you basically need your head examined to want to be a part of it," the writer added.

Diana — who died at the age of 36 in a Parisian car crash in 1997 — tied the knot with Charles, 77, when she was just 21 years old in 1981.

Charles and Diana had a picture-perfect "fairytale" marriage in the eyes of the public, with their opulent wedding being held at Westminster Abbey. However, their relationship began to crumble shortly after they walked down the aisle, with multiple affair allegations from both parties making headlines in the subsequent years.

The pair separated in 1992 and officially divorced four years later. The former Prince of Wales and Lady Di first met in 1977 when Charles (who was 29 years old at the time) was dating her older sister Sarah McCorquodale.

According to Mayer, Diana and Charles had “conflicting expectations” of their marriage.

Charles was encouraged by his great uncle Lord Mountbatten to “sow his wild oats” before getting married and advised he should choose a “sweet-charactered girl” as his wife.

As for Diana and Andrew's relationship once she joined The Firm, they allegedly had a strained bond. Royal author Andrew Lownie claimed in his 2025 book, Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York, that she once described her brother-in-law as “very, very noisy and loud."

She also characterized Andrew as someone who was “not a doer.”

“One moment he would be diligent and polite, the next aggressive and rude,” Lownie wrote of Andrew. However, Diana and Andrew's ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, were very good friends and even fourth cousins who had known each other since they were teens.