John Travolta still has fond memories of his “fairytale” dance with Princess Diana.
The late Princess and her then-husband Prince Charles were guests of US President Ronald Reagan and First Lady Nancy Reagan in November 1985, and John – who was also among the guests – was asked by Nancy whether he’d like to dance with Diana at the White House.
The 67-year-old actor recalled: “My heart starts to race and I tap her on the shoulder and she turns around and looks at me.”
Earlier in the night, John was told by Nancy that the Princess dreamed of dancing with him at the event.
However, he still felt anxious about approaching Diana – who was 24 at the time – and dancing with her on the marble floor of the White House’s Cross Hall.
Speaking to Life & Style magazine, he recalled: “The whole room cleared and we danced for what felt like 15 minutes. It was a storybook moment. We bowed when it was over … and my carriage turned into a pumpkin.”
The ‘Saturday Night Fever’ star won’t ever forget his dance with the Princess, who died in a car accident in Paris in August 1997.
He also revealed that Diana considered their dance to be the “highlight” of her visit to the US.
He shared: “I’m so honoured that I was able to experience that, and I know for a fact that it was the highlight of her time in the United States.”
John admitted the Princess helped to make feel special “for that moment”, adding that she also made his life “better”.
And the Hollywood star feels sad that she’s no longer with us.
He said: “I feel I made her life better, she made my life better, and I’m very sorry that she’s not here.”