A letter from Princess Diana, penned 47 years ago, has surfaced for sale, offering a glimpse into her youthful ambition to become a professional dancer. Written at the age of 17, the correspondence sees the future royal confiding in a friend about her aspirations.
The Letter's Contents
"I am off to find a place to dance," she wrote in the letter dated 1 February 1979, adding: "I have always wanted to and hope one day to get somewhere with it." The letter came a year before she began dating Prince Charles, a relationship that would ultimately lead to royal duties taking precedence.
However, Diana's love for dance endured, famously culminating in her iconic dance with John Travolta at the White House in 1985. The letter itself was a thank you note to Mildred Lacy, who had sent well wishes to Diana's father, John Spencer, 8th Earl Spencer, following a stroke.
A Thank You Note
Diana wrote: "Thank you so much for writing to Daddy. As he cannot do it himself, he asked me to write and tell you how grateful he was. We have all been so lucky and everyone has helped us no end which we are eternally thankful. Soon he will come home which will be amazing after all these months."
She also mentioned her younger brother Charles Spencer, noting that he "is loving boarding school and is now very tall and grown up" for a 14-year-old.
Historical Significance
The two-page letter, signed 'Diana' and also on behalf of her brother, is expected to fetch £4,000 at Chiswick Auctions in west London. It has been consigned from a private collector along with some ephemera from Charles and Diana's wedding in 1981.
Chiswick Auctions manuscripts specialist Valentina Borghi commented: "The letter refers to the stroke suffered by Princess Diana's father in September 1978. He recovered sufficiently to escort his daughter down the aisle at her 1981 wedding to Prince Charles. It is refreshing to see something related to her life before she became Princess of Wales. Not many items from that period have been offered. It is surely different to handle something related to her life before her marriage to Charles, and collectors will love it."
Diana's Dance Legacy
Diana had her own private dance teacher, Glaswegian former ballet dancer Anne Allan, from 1981 to 1990. Allan said in an interview in 2025: "During my time with the Princess, I was so fortunate to witness not only Diana's profound love of dance, but a much more personal side of her."
Diana died in a Paris car crash in 1997. The sale takes place on 24 March.
