Princess Diana’s former butler Paul Burrell has dismissed rumours that her son Prince Harry is the child of James Hewitt.
The 33-year-old royal has been plagued with comments about his parents after it was claimed his father could be former polo player James rather than the late Princesses ex-husband Prince Charles, with whom she also had 35-year-old son Prince William.
But now, her former butler Paul – who worked for the princess before her death in 1997 – has said the idea is impossible, as Diana didn’t know James before Harry was born.
When asked during his appearance on Australia’s ‘I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!’ if he thought Prince Charles was Harry’s real father, he said: "Yes. Absolutely."
And when ‘Real Housewives Of Sydney’ star Jackie Gillies asked the 59-year-old butler if he was sure it wasn’t James, he said: "She [Princess Diana] didn’t know James Hewitt when Harry was born. That’s fact. Five years into the marriage, she had Harry. She hadn’t yet met James Hewitt. That’s the truth."
The former cavalry officer, 59, has been dogged with questions about his paternity since he revealed he had once engaged in an affair with the Princess whilst she was still married to Prince Charles – whom she divorced in 1996 – after sources drew similarities between Harry and James.
Asked about his paternity in 2017, he said: "No, I’m not [Harry’s father]. It sells papers. It’s worse for him, probably, poor chap."
In 2015, Prince Harry and Prince William were offered the chance to buy letters from James which had been written by their mother, before the correspondence was to be put on the market.
Los Angeles-based dealer Gary Zimet – who was selling the letters on behalf of James – said: "I thought it was the decent thing to do. It was easy to find out who their lawyer is from the internet, so I wrote to Mr Tyrrell and attached scans of the letters and cards and wrote, ‘Kindly advise if William and Harry would be interested in acquiring these letters and cards which I am selling on behalf of James Hewitt.’"
Paul Burrell slams Prince Harry’s parentage rumours
