The Diana Inquest: October 2007 - April 2008

[ysbel]

That sort of personal gift would perhaps be given to the groom as a wedding gift from his bride. The same way that I received jewellery given to my husband by his grandmama on our wedding day. I don't think Diana would have given a 'significant' gift to someone she had known such a short time and could have been a summer infatuation. If they were that important to her, why did she not give them to Hasnet?

Fair enough but then how do you explain the letter where she told him that these were her father's cufflinks?

Or do you think she was stringing him along and making him feel that he was more special to her than he actually was to prevent him from leaving her as Hasnet did?

 

[Skydragon]

Fair enough but then how do you explain the letter where she told him that these were her father's cufflinks?

Or do you think she was stringing him along and making him feel that he was more special to her than he actually was to prevent him from leaving her as Hasnet did?

They probably were a pair of her fathers cufflinks, probably just one set of the many pairs he discarded over the years that Diana had kept. I think it was just something she wrote to make the gift sound significant to the recipient.

She has not suggested they were important to her and that is why I believe they were just a thank you gift, to someone she had enjoyed a fling with.

 

[BeatrixFan]

I don't see what this is all about. Diana was given a pair of cufflinks from her father. She loved her father. She gave them to Dodi because she loved him. What am I missing?

 

[Skydragon]

She gave them to Dodi because she loved him.......

Or they were just a thank you to a friend/summer fling?

 

[georgiea]

quote shortened - I don't for a moment believe that they were his 'last gift' to her, but it does sound good to the recipient.

We won't ever know if it was her last jewellry gift from her father. But, it was written in a letter by her in those words and more word about how Dodi made her very happy, so to me it means something to the recipient and his father. Do you remember that Mr. Mohammed al Fayed was a good friend of Diana's father and Raine? That is how I believe Diana first met the al Fayeds. So to me this letter makes even more sense that it was not a casual fling by Diana giving her father's friend's son a gift from him.

If they were that important to her, why did she not give them to Hasnet?

Maybe because Dodi wanted to marry her. And maybe she did give Hasnet some gifts that he returned to her when they broke up two months before. The relationship with Hewitt was over before her father died in 1992, so she could not give such a personal gift.

Yes Diana fussed around her brother and father, which is why she was devastated that her father replaced her with Raine.

She was devastated with Raine and did not treat her right I admit, but in the end she did become friends with Raine. Again, I read that her father wanted Diana to make peace with Raine when he was dying. I know it took a long time for that relationship to develop, but it did. It might have develped as Skydragon said because she was getting even with her mother, but I hope it was because of the love of her father that she finally became friends with Raine.

 

[georgiea]

I don't see what this is all about. Diana was given a pair of cufflinks from her father. She loved her father. She gave them to Dodi because she loved him. What am I missing?

Right on BeatrixFan!!!

Could it also maybe mean that Mr. al Fayed might not be a total liar? It will be interesting to see what the jury is going to say.

She has not suggested they were important to her and that is why I believe they were just a thank you gift, to someone she had enjoyed a fling with.

Letter 2 - dated August 13, 1997
"Darling Dodi,
"These cufflinks were the very last gift that I received from the man I loved most in the world - My Father -
"They are given to you as I know how much joy it would give him to know they were in such safe & special hands...
"Fondest love, from, Diana. x"

To me these words show that she wanted to keep the love relationship going and not a summer fling. And even if Diana was treating it that way - I don't think Dodi would have taken it that way with these words.
What I don't understand is why do people think they would have married right away. I think Diana would taken it slow and put the ring on her right hand.

 

[BeatrixFan]

Or they were just a thank you to a friend/summer fling?

Well, I'd say that as Diana was obviously a person who fell in love very easily, they were indeed to be a gift based on love. I know that I've sent gifts to ex's with similar notes because I felt it was 'the real thing'. I think that was how Diana acted on this one. She fell in love, she sent something very personal and it probably made Dodi feel loved- which in a relationship is surely the key aim of both people?

 

[TheTruth]

Well, I'd say that as Diana was obviously a person who fell in love very easily, they were indeed to be a gift based on love. I know that I've sent gifts to ex's with similar notes because I felt it was 'the real thing'. I think that was how Diana acted on this one. She fell in love, she sent something very personal and it probably made Dodi feel loved- which in a relationship is surely the key aim of both people?

I totally follow you on this one BeatrixFan. Maybe they thought it was true love and perhaps it was, even if we tend to think it was just a summer fling. At that time of her life, Diana wasn't going well : Hasnat had left her, Camilla was with Charles, Hewitt was revealing god-knows-how-many details of their love story, etc. Having someone next to her who was in the same state-of-mind (i.e. completely lost) looked impossible, but Dodi was there, with the lover problems and loneliness just like Diana.

 

[Skydragon]

Do you remember that Mr. Mohammed al Fayed was a good friend of Diana's father and Raine? That is how I believe Diana first met the al Fayeds. So to me this letter makes even more sense that it was not a casual fling by Diana giving her father's friend's son a gift from him.

Lets be honest here, yes they were friends of Raine's and her father but the cherry on the cake for Diana, would have been the knowledge that Fayed was despised by the 'men in grey suits' and the RF.

Well, I'd say that as Diana was obviously a person who fell in love very easily, they were indeed to be a gift based on love. I know that I've sent gifts to ex's with similar notes because I felt it was 'the real thing'. I think that was how Diana acted on this one. She fell in love, she sent something very personal and it probably made Dodi feel loved- which in a relationship is surely the key aim of both people?

Or is it that she played on the 'man flu' syndrome?

 

[BeatrixFan]

Does it matter though? Whether she thought she was in love or whether she really was, she had someone close to her. And let's not forget, love has many forms. I don't really see why it's nessecary to try and prove that Diana didn't love Dodi - what can be gained from it? We're all entitled to love if we find it, as unpalatable to social norms as it may or may not be.

 

[Skydragon]

"Darling Dodi,
"These cufflinks were the very last gift that I received from the man I loved most in the world - My Father -
"They are given to you as I know how much joy it would give him to know they were in such safe & special hands...
"Fondest love, from, Diana. x"
To me these words show that she wanted to keep the love relationship going and not a summer fling. And even if Diana was treating it that way - I don't think Dodi would have taken it that way with these words.

As with anyone, I can only base my opinion on what I know others of her class have always done and as I keep saying, this is not a 'love note', but an affectionate thank you. The same sort of heading and ending on the PM's I write to some people on here!

Does it matter though? Whether she thought she was in love or whether she really was, she had someone close to her. And let's not forget, love has many forms. I don't really see why it's nessecary to try and prove that Diana didn't love Dodi - what can be gained from it? We're all entitled to love if we find it, as unpalatable to social norms as it may or may not be.

Yes we are all entitled to love, the only point I disagree with is the significance of the cufflinks. It is suggested that she was deeply in love with Dodi and the cufflinks are being offered as a strong hint that she was going to become engaged to him.

I don't like Diana (as you know) but even I credit her with more sense/intelligence than to accept that she would commit to anyone so easily after her disastrous marriage and liasons. I feel everyone is doing her a dis-service by buying into Fayeds fantasy. She was worth more than that.

 

[TheTruth]

Does it matter though? Whether she thought she was in love or whether she really was, she had someone close to her. And let's not forget, love has many forms. I don't really see why it's nessecary to try and prove that Diana didn't love Dodi - what can be gained from it? We're all entitled to love if we find it, as unpalatable to social norms as it may or may not be.

Exactly. If she had found someone that understood her, where's the problem ? I'm sure he was really nice to her and that she was happy to finally be free to do what she wanted and be able to love without hidding.

 

[BeatrixFan]

Does the significance of a pair of cufflinks matter though Skydragon? If they were meant as a token of love or as just a gift, who cares? It's what they meant to Dodi that matters, not us and as they weren't intended for us, why worry?

 

[georgiea]

Lets be honest here, yes they were friends of Raine's and her father but the cherry on the cake for Diana, would have been the knowledge that Fayed was despised by the 'men in grey suits' and the RF.

Again Skydragon, I read that summer she had no other invitations for July and August. Her social group got small after she divorced Charles. And why spend the summer home if you don't have too?

Also, if I remember correctly she was going on a vacation with another girlfriend when that friend's father died, so Dodi asked her to join him for a few days away from England. Unfortunely it was her last vacation!!! I also think she felt safe with his protection force.

It could be possible about Diana knowing the "men in grey suits" did not like al Fayed and would go on vacation just to make them upset, but I think she was trying to move away from the whole BRF scene. It was as said from my reading that Diana and Charles were getting on well after the divorce. Charles even stopped by and talked with her about the children and I think they were going to do a function together in the next few months.

 

[georgiea]

I credit her with more sense/intelligence than to accept that she would commit to anyone so easily after her disastrous marriage and liasons.

Skydragon, I do agree with the above statement. And we will never know what she would do. I think some of the posters including myself hope that she really did find some real love with Dodi at the end of her short, sad life.

Let's move on and I can not wait until next week's saga starts at the inquest.

 

[Skydragon]

Does the significance of a pair of cufflinks matter though Skydragon? If they were meant as a token of love or as just a gift, who cares? It's what they meant to Dodi that matters, not us and as they weren't intended for us, why worry?

I think it does, as I said it is buying into Fayeds fantasy and for all we know Dodi knew they were just a gift, but they are being held up as evidence that she would have married Dodi. As with the pregnancy rumours, I always believed that Diana had too much 'class' to allow herself to become pregnant and was horrified that her fans would believe she would do that.

I am equally horrified that her fans would accept that she would give away a precious gift from her father, to a male companion.

I too hope she had a really wonderful last few weeks on holiday, it's just a pity that Dodi and his father didn't take care of her on that fateful night.

 

[ysbel]

I think it does, as I said it is buying into Fayeds fantasy and for all we know Dodi knew they were just a gift, but they are being held up as evidence that she would have married Dodi. As with the pregnancy rumours, I always believed that Diana had too much 'class' to allow herself to become pregnant and was horrified that her fans would believe she would do that.

I am equally horrified that her fans would accept that she would give away a precious gift from her father, to a male companion.

I too hope she had a really wonderful last few weeks on holiday, it's just a pity that Dodi and his father didn't take care of her on that fateful night.

Hold on, there's a wide gulf between summer fling and imminent wedding.

A summer fling means that it was over when they were killed in the car; an imminent wedding means they were going to get married later that year. But there are a lot of possibilities in between those two extremes. Perhaps they both thought they were in love and wanted to see each other a lot more just to find out.

But from the quotes of Diana's friends, she was ready to dump Dodi that night she died. The cufflinks lead us to another conclusion than that but not necessarily imminent marriage. I still can't see Diana using her father's cufflinks as a parting gift for a naughty summer romp.

 

[sthreats]

A few months ago I made a comment regarding the 'flash of light' conspiracy theory and that Camilla and Diana were both victims of this flash. Skydragon disagreed in a polite way. After following this inquest for the past 2months I have concluded that 1) Diana died in a horrible and like avoidable accident and 2) there was no conspiracy with lights, the royal family or anybody else.

I read a very interesting expose on Mr. Fayed Sr. in Vanity Fair from 1995. While it is true that he is involved in some questionable business dealings I think his grief for his son is real. It is the worst thing for a parent to lose a child and the parent is always looking for the answer Why? My 31 year old sister died from sudden cardiac death 5 years ago. She dropped dead talking to my mother. After autopsies, medical record reviews etc... it was just one of those horrible things. My parents, siblings, and I have moved on but it is still painful.
I think after all of this digging and further invasion into Princess Diana's privacy, the coroner will conclude that it was an accident, there was no foulplay, and the medical team tried their best. Mr. Fayed will have to let this go and move on with his remaining family. Princes Charles,
William and Harry will have to go on as well.

 

[georgiea]

I read a very interesting expose on Mr. Fayed Sr. in Vanity Fair from 1995. While it is true that he is involved in some questionable business dealings I think his grief for his son is real. It is the worst thing for a parent to lose a child and the parent is always looking for the answer.

Yes, sthreats i really agree with you about Mr. al Fayed griefing for is son. But, with this inquest we are now getting information that support Mr. al Fayed. I don't think Princess Diana was pregnant and definitely Prince Philip is not responsible for Diana's death. But other things - like the black car and fiat, the budding relationship, and the ties to the secret forces MI6 has got me thinking now. I think it is going to be an interesting next few months with this inquest.

I do hope that when the jury decides a verdit all parties with then let Princess Diana rest.

Nice that you came aboard.

 

[Skydragon]

A summer fling means that it was over when they were killed in the car; an imminent wedding means they were going to get married later that year. But there are a lot of possibilities in between those two extremes. Perhaps they both thought they were in love and wanted to see each other a lot more just to find out.

But from the quotes of Diana's friends, she was ready to dump Dodi that night she died. The cufflinks lead us to another conclusion than that but not necessarily imminent marriage. I still can't see Diana using her father's cufflinks as a parting gift for a naughty summer romp.

IMO, the gift of the cufflinks was not a 'signal' that she was 'madly' in love with him. The letters although 'nice' have no passion, no oomph, they are just nice polite little thank you notes. Although I will definitely be careful what I put in my thank you letters from now on.

<shortened quote> I think his grief for his son is real. It is the worst thing for a parent to lose a child and the parent is always looking for the answer.........
.......I think after all of this digging and further invasion into Princess Diana's privacy, the coroner will conclude that it was an accident, there was no foulplay, and the medical team tried their best. Mr. Fayed will have to let this go and move on with his remaining family. Princes Charles, William and Harry will have to go on as well.

I also believe his grief is real and one of the reasons he 'needs' to believe it is someone elses fault, is that if he has to accept his employee or his car were at fault, it makes it so much harder to bear. After any loss, (I am sorry to hear of yours ), the questions run through your mind of, could I have done things differently, would it have made a difference, the 'what if' syndrome. What a weight to bear for him.

However, William and Harry lost their beloved mother and for him to accuse their beloved grandpapa must have made it even harder for them. Can you imagine what hell it must be for them, hearing and reading about every intimate detail of their mothers life, hearing how they cut her up and checked this organ or that? If his son did indeed love Diana, then Fayed should feel shame for putting her boys through this extended enquiry!

 

[Jo of Palatine]

They probably were a pair of her fathers cufflinks, probably just one set of the many pairs he discarded over the years that Diana had kept. I think it was just something she wrote to make the gift sound significant to the recipient.

She has not suggested they were important to her and that is why I believe they were just a thank you gift, to someone she had enjoyed a fling with.

Maybe it even was ironic, because she knew that for this daddy's boy a reference to an actual daddy was much more important than a reference to herself.

As for cufflinks, really, men used to wear dress shirts have an abundance of the stuff because they get them all the time as gifts themselves. At least here in Germany it used to be considered to be a very male gift but a very impersonal one at the same time. Like a tie or a cravat needle. Cufflinks are not longer much in use, as most shirts nowadays have buttons but for people wearing smoking or cut often they are still needed. Thus I believe it was an appropriate gift for Dodi, who treated her to a lot of outings were he wore evening dress but I think, too, that she wrote that only to make it a bit more personal. Didn't she refer to her father normally as "Daddy"? And maybe someone should ask Lady Sarah McCorquodale when Diana purchased these cufflinks. I'm sure Diana kept the receipt somewhere...

 

[Jo of Palatine]

Well, Warren why bring up that Diana had 5 or more lovers at the inquest? What does that do but make Diana look like a slut.

Maybe it should prove that Diana in fact slept with Dodi after such short acquaintance. There are people like I think, Rosa Monckton who claim that Diana didn't even sleep with Dodi so how could she become pregnant? In order to prove a potential pregnancy, they maybe felt they have to prove a sexual relationship first...

 

[Skydragon]

As for cufflinks, really, men used to wear dress shirts have an abundance of the stuff because they get them all the time as gifts themselves. At least here in Germany it used to be considered to be a very male gift but a very impersonal one at the same time. Like a tie or a cravat needle. Cufflinks are not longer much in use, as most shirts nowadays have buttons but for people wearing smoking or cut often they are still needed. Thus I believe it was an appropriate gift for Dodi, who treated her to a lot of outings where he wore evening dress but I think, too, that she wrote that only to make it a bit more personal. Didn't she refer to her father normally as "Daddy"? And maybe someone should ask Lady Sarah McCorquodale when Diana purchased these cufflinks. I'm sure Diana kept the receipt somewhere...

Yes, even here they are still 'de rigeour' for a lot of men (and women). I thought it was just my mob that had dozens of pairs as gifts over the years. Most of the London shirt makers offer casual shirts with the option of button fastening, but most formal shirts come with a need for cufflinks.

 

[Jo of Palatine]

Yes, even here they are still 'de rigeour' for a lot of men (and women). I thought it was just my mob that had dozens of pairs as gifts over the years. Most of the London shirt makers offer casual shirts with the option of button fastening, but most formal shirts come with a need for cufflinks.

I have two sets as well for blouses, because I like them as accessory to otherwise too sober looking business suits. But I wouldn't dream of wearing cufflinks that belonged to my father - mine are much more feminine, smaller and more elaborate than the ones he used to prefer. AFAIK women never wear gentlemen's cufflinks and vice versa - so what did the late earl allegedly gave to his daughter or why would Diana give women's cufflinks to a man?

 

[georgiea]

Maybe it should prove that Diana in fact slept with Dodi after such short acquaintance. There are people like I think, Rosa Monckton who claim that Diana didn't even sleep with Dodi so how could she become pregnant? In order to prove a potential pregnancy, they maybe felt they have to prove a sexual relationship first...

Jo of Palatine-thanks for your idea. It does make a lot of sense to me. But, I still don't know why they had to show all her men relationships, because I don't think she had sex with all of her men friends. Some, if I read correctly were friends to go out with. And on the Squidygate tape? (spelling) she was afraid to get pregnant I thought. So how could all these men prove she was pregnant with a child from Dodi?

To me, and the class structure that I come from in the US, Diana giving her last gift from her father speaks volumes to where that relationship was going and that it wasn't a summer fling.

I sure don't like some of the things coming out at this inquest, but some new developments have gotten my interest. It is showing to me that Mr. al Fayed is not totally a liar or totally at fault for that tragic accident. I do feel sorry for the Princes. Prince Harry even has said, in a interview before the Concert for Diana that "we will never now all the details of what happen that night." I just wish that this inquest did not take over ten years. Ten years is too long for all family members involved to rehash the details and to live with questions.

I also hope for all family members involved that after this inquest is over that they let both Princess Diana and Dodi rest in peace.

 

[Skydragon]

'Diana Did Not Plan To Marry Dodi'

Princess Diana told a close friend she needed marriage to Dodi Fayed "like a rash on my face" days before the couple died in a car crash, an inquest has heard.

Princess Diana's Friend Says Dodi Fayed Marriage Plans Not True |Sky News|UK News

French police investigating the car crash which killed Princess Diana never suggested it was anything other than a tragic accident, her inquest has heard.

BBC NEWS | UK | 'No suggestion' of Diana murder

 

[TheTruth]

Princess Diana's Friend Says Dodi Fayed Marriage Plans Not True - Yahoo! News UK
Diana needed marriage "like rash on my face" - Yahoo! News UK

 

[Roslyn]

I just have to have my say about the cufflinks before that topic is overtaken by the latest scoop from the inquest.

The letter:

Letter 2 - dated August 13, 1997
"Darling Dodi,
"These cufflinks were the very last gift that I received from the man I loved most in the world - My Father -
"They are given to you as I know how much joy it would give him to know they were in such safe & special hands...
"Fondest love, from, Diana. x"

indicates to me that Diana did not regard her relationship with Dodi as merely a summer fling. This was a very significant gift, and it, and the wording she's used, tell me that she thought of Dodi as very special, and wanted the relationship to keep going to see where it will end up. I imagine - and hope - that she was having a wonderful time with Dodi; that he was treating her well and giving her the kind of affection and attention that she craved.

And my views about this are not changed by reading that she told Lady Goldsmith that she needed marriage like a rash on her face. Marriage had not exactly treated her kindly and I think she'd want to be very sure before committing to another one.

 

[CasiraghiTrio]

Maybe the truth of the relationship of Diana and Dodi was somewhere between the contrasting speculations: Serious but not ready for marriage, serious enough to be more than "summer fling" but not like having-a-baby serious.

 

[Jo of Palatine]

I just have to have my say about the cufflinks before that topic is overtaken by the latest scoop from the inquest.

The letter:

Letter 2 - dated August 13, 1997
"Darling Dodi,
"These cufflinks were the very last gift that I received from the man I loved most in the world - My Father -
"They are given to you as I know how much joy it would give him to know they were in such safe & special hands...
"Fondest love, from, Diana. x"

indicates to me that Diana did not regard her relationship with Dodi as merely a summer fling. This was a very significant gift, and it, and the wording she's used, tell me that she thought of Dodi as very special, and wanted the relationship to keep going to see where it will end up. I imagine - and hope - that she was having a wonderful time with Dodi; that he was treating her well and giving her the kind of affection and attention that she craved.

And my views about this are not changed by reading that she told Lady Goldsmith that she needed marriage like a rash on her face. Marriage had not exactly treated her kindly and I think she'd want to be very sure before committing to another one.

You have every right to your own opinion about the relationship between Diana and Dodi, but one should not forget why all these information is made public, why all these people speak up now: to come to a solid conclusion if Diana and Dodi were one day from announcing their marriage plans to the world when they died. If not, then there is absolutely no motive for murder.

I think we have heard enough statements now to discard the notion Diana was pregnant and thus forced to marry Dodi. Now the question is: did she want to marry him anyway and right then, as Al-Fayed claims he has already been told this as a fact by Diana.

For me, the "cufflinks"-letter does not speak of imminent marriage plans (at least I have never met someone who gave his new fiance cufflinks - Daddy-provenience nonewithstanding...): neither is the letter overly romantic or the gift a token of real love. I mean, I can understand why Diana would Dodi give cufflinks, be they a gift from her father or part in a made-up story of provenance. But I cannot believe that cufflinks are tokens of such a love that would make Diana getting rid of her name as a princess.

Fo me, this letter, as it seems to be the best Al-Fayed can provide, is the clear proof that Diana and Dodi did not plan to get married. Maybe not yet, okay, but that's not important for the inquest. But without a proper motive - why should someone bother to create such a complicated and unreliable plan to kill Diana in a Paris underpass?

She had all kinds of strange healing or wellness procedures done to her - like enemas etc. I've a book here called "Deadly Doses" - a writer's guide to poisons by Serita Stevens. In it she describes not only the poisons and the way they work, but methods of administrations as well. Believe me, MI6 could have killed Diana by rectal administration anytime during one of these wellness applications without leaving traces that point to other reasons but natural ones (with a medical history of bulimia you have a much higher risk to die of a heart attack or collaps than others). So why bother with tunnels in France? Especially as she was not oing to get engaged to al-fayed jr. anytime soon, as Lady Annabel stated?