Princess Diana's impossible dream with the 'love of her life', Hasnat Khan
At the time of Princess Diana's death she was dating Dodi Fayed, but shortly before that romance she was said to have been hopelessly in love with 36-year-old Pakistani heart surgeon Hasnat Khan.
He was a man who had never betrayed her, nor had he used her to put himself in the spotlight.
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According to Tina Brown, author of The Diana Chronicles, Diana and Hasnat had a whirlwind romance that lasted just two years. People who knew Diana at the time have spoken about how she was desperate for a "normal life", and she believed she could have that with Hasnat. But in the end, he was not willing to continue a romance with a woman as famous as she was.
Some of Diana's closest friends have insisted she was not engaged to Dodi Fayed but was still very much in love with Hasnat, and had struggled to come to terms with the fact he didn't want to marry her.
It was really an impossible dream for Diana to start a new life with the unassuming heart surgeon. Let's take a look at the love affair that just didn't work out, despite Diana's best intentions.
When the 'People's Princess' met the heart surgeon
When Diana first met Dr Hasnat Khan in 1995 at the Royal Brompton Hospital, it was a classic case of "love at first sight." The doctor was looking after Diana's friend Oonagh Shanley-Toffolo's husband, who'd had a triple bypass operation.
Apparently, when Hasnat left the room Diana turned to her friend and told her he was "gorgeous." Meanwhile, he had barely glanced at her.
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"It is doubtful if in her entire adult life Diana, the Princess of Wales, had ever made less of an impression on someone!" Oonagh told journalists after Diana's death.
According to Vanity Fair, there were two weeks between their first meeting and their first date, which took place at the home of Hasnat's aunt and uncle. He had asked Diana if she'd like to join him at their home, where he was picking up some books.
"I did not think for one minute that she would say yes, but I asked her if she would like to come with me. I was very surprised when she said she would. After this, our friendship turned into a relationship," Hasnat recalled, according to the transcript of an interview with police in 2004, part of an investigation into her death.
A secret love story
That was the beginning of a secret love affair. Diana and Hasnat were able to spend their time together in Kensington Palace, so they could avoid the paparazzi, and also spent time in Chelsea, where Hasnat lived. Friends of Diana have said she'd wear a dark wig and sunglasses, which gave her some freedom.
Hasnat has been described as a serious man, a hard-working junior surgeon employed by the National Health Service. He worked long hours at the hospital and, when he was at home, he wanted to relax.
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Diana was said to have loved the normalcy of his life and delighted in cooking for him and helping with housework. During the relationship, she tried to immerse herself in Pakistani culture and she made several trips to Pakistan so she could learn about Hasnat's culture.
Occasionally, she was said to have slept over at the hospital in a small overnight room Hasnat used after a late shift. One story claims Diana was almost caught by a photographer as she arrived at the hospital at midnight.
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But the surgeon was said to be very uncomfortable knowing he was dating one of the world's most recognisable women, and he had no desire to spend his life in the spotlight.
Diana's butler and friend Paul Burrell has spoken about being the organiser of the relationship. "Hasnat was the true love of her life, not Dodi Al Fayed, and she'd want people to know he was. Myth and stories have grown up over the years that aren't true. I am the last witness to that part of history. Hasnat was the man she wanted to marry, not Dodi," he's told journalists.
Paul also claims he was there from the first day of the relationship until the day it finished. "I organised this thing: romantic candlelit dinners, telling chef that the Princess was hungry so could he do double portions กช I'd do it all in secret and provide this world for them. I was this go?between who made it happen. I would shop for gifts for him and take letters to the hospital. I was privy to her deepest, darkest secrets," he said.
Diana's friend Jemima Khan, who accompanied Diana on her 1996 Pakistan trip, said in 2013 she was so 'madly in love' with Hasnat, she considered moving to Pakistan to be with him. She also discussed the idea of marriage before realising Hasnat's family would never approve of her.
The rumour mill
Rumours circulated that Diana was secretly dating a heart surgeon after developing an obsession with heart surgery and taking a film crew with her to the hospital.
The first publication to ignite rumours was the Sunday Mirror but, in a bid to keep the relationship out of the press, Diana apparently phoned one of the journalists to say there was no truth to the rumour.
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The newspaper claimed Diana was "understood to be deeply upset at the allegations because of the hurt they will do to William and Henry." This was said to have caused problem in Diana's relationship with Hasnat, which saw him begin to back away from Diana.
To make life more difficult for the couple, Hasnat's family didn't approve of their relationship. There'd been two attempts to marry Hasnat to a suitable bride จC his family did not believe Diana was good for him.
Royal expert Eve Pollard told the media at the time, "The idea that the Princess of Wales was going to marry a doctor from Pakistan and perhaps go and live with him in Pakistan was just not what we were expecting. She had long conversations with Jemima Khan, who had actually married Imran Khan, and I think Diana was wondering if it was something she could do."
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'I would not be able to live a normal life'
In July 1997, the relationship was effectively over, as Hasnat had made it clear he couldn't marry Diana. According to royal correspondent Jennie Bond, she was worried nobody would want the baggage that comes with her life.
"And in the end she was right, because he felt he didn't want to live in that goldfish bowl with that kind of limelight," Jennie said.
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Yet according to Vanity Fair, which published excerpts from Hasnat's interview with police, Diana distanced herself from Hasnat, even more so once she met Dodi จC although her friends believe she had hoped her romance with Dodi would make Hasnat jealous and perhaps they could reunite.
With their relationship over, Diana took William and Harry on holiday to the home of Mohamed Al-Fayed in the south of France. It was during this time she became close to his son, Dodi, who left his fiancจฆ to be with Diana.
Hasnat later told police investigating Diana's death, "My main concern about us getting married was that my life would be hell because of who she was. I knew I would not be able to live a normal life and if we ever had children together, I would not be able to take them anywhere or do normal things with them."
Yet, according to Paul Burrell, Diana was still very much in love with Hasnat. "Every time Diana rang me she would ask about Hasnat: 'Have you seen him? Have you been to his pub? Has he seen the pictures in the papers? What did he think? Is he jealous?" he told the media.
Diana's final weeks
Diana attended the memorial for Italian fashion designer Gianni Versace before meeting Hasnat back in London where, according to Paul Burrell, they argued about her new romance with Dodi.
Then, she went to Bosnia on a humanitarian trip, followed by a Greek Island cruise with a female friend. When she returned to London, she had lunch with William in Kensington, which was the last time he ever saw his mother.
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On the night of Diana's death in August 1997, Hasnat told police he had tried to call her but she'd changed her number. When he attended the funeral, he wore sunglasses and sat alone, speaking to nobody.
According to Vanity Fair, this is what Hasnat told police about the aftermath of their relationship:
"I think that if Diana were alive today, we would have remained very good friends, whatever she did and whomever she was with. It is a huge loss when someone very close to you dies. I do not know what Diana was like in other relationships but she protected me very well, not just from the media but also from a lot of information. Perhaps she protected me because she thought we had a future together."
In the end, Hasnat has always protected Diana by giving very little away. He remains one of just a handful of people she loved who has never betrayed her by "spilling secrets" about their relationship, and to this day, he closely guards her memory.
