Who Is Tiggy Legge-Bourke? All About the Nanny Princess Diana Believed was Having an Affair with King Charles
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A report revealing King Charles III was questioned by the U.K. police in 2005 about the death of his ex-wife, Princess Diana, has revived interest in the former Prince of Wales' alleged relationship with Alexandra "Tiggy" Pettifer (née Legge-Bourke).
Lord Stevens — a former head of Scotland Yard — told the Daily Mail in 2021 that he spoke to Prince Charles about a note that Princess Diana wrote in 1995. The note allegedly read, "My husband is planning 'an accident' in my car, brake failure and serious head injury," so he could marry Tiggy, a nanny for Prince William and Prince Harry.
Diana added in the note that Charles' current wife, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, "is nothing but a decoy."
Julian Parker/UK Press via Getty Tiggy Legge-Bourke Prince Harry and Prince Charles
Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Prince Charles and Princess Diana
Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Tiggy Legge-Bourke and Prince Charles
Tiggy was hired by Charles as a nanny for William and Harry in 1993, shortly after Charles and Diana separated. She joined the princes on vacations and maintained a close relationship with them, with both attending her wedding to security consultant Charles Pettifer in 1999.
Mathieu Polak/Sygma/Sygma via Getty Prince Harry, Tiggy Legge-Bourke and Prince William
In return, Tiggy was a guest at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's 2018 wedding — and was named a godmother for their first child, son Archie (daughter Lilibet Diana was born in June 2021).
Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Tiggy Legge-Bourke attends Prince Harry's wedding
Tiggy was back in the news in 2021 when it was revealed that Diana had become convinced of the nanny's affair with Charles — partly stoked by a fake abortion "receipt" for Tiggy that BBC journalist Martin Bashir allegedly presented to Diana in an attempt to land a 1995 interview for the Panorama news program. Queen Elizabeth's private secretary, Sir Robert Fellowes, also launched an investigation into Diana's claims.
After a months-long investigation, Scotland Yard confirmed in March 2021 that Bashir wouldn't face criminal charges over the allegations and that he also faked bank statements to secure the sit-down.
PA Images Princess Diana during her Panorama interview
Charles was also interviewed at St. James's Palace as a witness two years into the investigation after the note became public in 2003.
"At the end of the day, he was incredibly cooperative because he had nothing to hide," Stevens told the Daily Mail.
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Stevens regretted that he and his officers did not interview Bashir.
"If there'd been an allegation that Bashir had produced allegedly fake documents to Princess Diana, which is a criminal offense, we'd have investigated it. My goodness me, we would have done," he said. "But this has only come out recently, which is unfortunate."
In July 2022, Tiggy was given an apology at the High Court over unfounded allegations she had an affair with Charles and an abortion. The BBC was also ordered to pay damages to Tiggy over the false claims, which caused "serious personal consequences," her solicitor, Louise Prince, said, adding that "these allegations were fabricated."
Following the hearing, BBC director-general Tim Davie said the corporation apologized to Tiggy, Charles, William and Harry "for the way in which Princess Diana was deceived and the subsequent impact on all their lives."
A statement from Tiggy, who has been “scarred by the deceitful way in which the BBC Panorama was made” adding “the distress to the Royal Family is a source of great upset to me. I know first-hand how much they were affected at the time.” She says it has “haunted” them ever since. pic.twitter.com/RyoCLcn7US
— Roya Nikkhah (@RoyaNikkhah) July 21, 2022
"I know first-hand how much they were affected at the time and how the program and the false narrative it created have haunted the family in the years since," Tiggy said. "Especially because, still today, so much about the making of the program is yet to be adequately explained."
