Lady Tryon ("Kanga") and Other Female Friends of Charles

[Daria_S]

2- According to Christopher Andersen's book, After Diana from around 1976- 1996, C. had an on- again, off- again affair with Canadian woman Janet Jenkins. The book quotes love letters, and in an interview in the book, Jenkins confirms the affair. And of course Kanga for 25 years. The book claims C had affairs with at least a dozen women during this period. I do not know how accurate that claim is. But Andersen is a pretty reliable writer. I recommend you read the book.
3- As far as the world knows, Charles has been faithful to Camilla since the time of her marriage.

Wow. You do indeed learn something new every single day. My question is, how do these biographers get access to such personal details?

 

[Oliv]

I've just read a very informative article about Janet Jenkins, with her actually talking about Charles and their relationship in detail I went to his bedroom to borrow some toothpaste but we spent the | Sunday Mirror Newspaper | Find Articles at BNET

their affair apparently ended before Charles married Diana, but they slept together once more in 1992 (just because they were lonely and upset or something)

the Kanga thing is still confusing to me, though. I mean, from what I've read, it seems like she was completely obsessed with Charles, but he didn't care too much. I never read he cheated on Diana with her.

gosh, I'm so disgusted by these women and their blabbing about their relationship with Charles. this is exactly why Camilla is great - she never talks about intimate details from their lives

 

[Daria_S]

I've just read a very informative article about Janet Jenkins, with her actually talking about Charles and their relationship in detail I went to his bedroom to borrow some toothpaste but we spent the | Sunday Mirror Newspaper | Find Articles at BNET

their affair apparently ended before Charles married Diana, but they slept together once more in 1992 (just because they were lonely and upset or something)

the Kanga thing is still confusing to me, though. I mean, from what I've read, it seems like she was completely obsessed with Charles, but he didn't care too much. I never read he cheated on Diana with her.

gosh, I'm so disgusted by these women and their blabbing about their relationship with Charles. this is exactly why Camilla is great - she never talks about intimate details from their lives

I wonder why Charles never got any sort of restraining order against Lady Tryon. If she were obsessed with him, didn't it rise some sort of concern for his safety? She sounds like a stalker-typle to me.

As for these women talking about their intimate relationships with the Prince of Wales, I guess they just want their own fifteen seconds/minutes of fame. However, it is rather disrespectful on their part. The Duchess of Cornwall strikes me as a very discreet type of person, and I'm glad that some things about their relationship will remain private. We don't need to know every single detail of anyone's affairs, if the truth were told.

 

[Iluvbertie]

Why do people immediately assume that these women are telling the truth?

Charles has admitted one affair - with Camilla.

Kanga was a friend for many years - were they lovers - maybe before he married Diana but afterwards I doubt it.

It is possible to have friendships that don't end up as affairs or even one night stands.

 

[Charlotte1]

sorry to bump this thread, but I became a fan of Prince Charles just a few weeks ago and his relationships (after he married Diana) are a little confusing to me. I'm just wondering whether any of you could give me a short answer few questions:

1. when exactly was Charles involved with Kanga? I read a few articles about them, but I'm still not quite sure

2. was Camilla the only other woman? (there are rumors about some others, but since I didn't really follow Charles much, I don't know whether to believe them)

3. has Charles been involved with anyone since he has officially been with Camilla?

thank you

The Kanga relationship is not one that went past his marriage to Diana. Charles met the then Dale Harper (Kanga) when he was at school in Australia, she was Australian from Melbourne. In the early 1970s she went to work in London and met her future husband who at that time was in of Charles's social circle. Kanga's son oldest son Charles (born in the mid 1970s) is Prince Charles's godchild) During the 1970s Kanga featured quite heavily in the Australian women's magazines as she traded on her friendship with Charles. During this period Charles had 2 close married female friends, Kanga and Camilla. He also had serious girlfriends.

Kanga was cut of of Charles's social circle by Diana after her engagement, according to Charles's former valet Stephen Barry in his memoirs Royal Service. Kanga asked him if he knew why they (the Tryons) were no longer invited to social occasions. Kanga was friends with Nigel Dempster who was the Daily Mail's society columnist and just before Diana and Charles's wedding in July 1981 rather sniffily told him that she would be hosting a soiree for friends at the restaurant Lorenzo since she hadn't been invited to the 'close friends and family' dinner at Buckingham Palace the night before the wedding. "Mrs Parker Bowles was holding her own soiree the same night at a different location"

By the mid 1980s there are a few photos of Charles, Diana and Kanga bumping into each other at a few events. But there wasn't a great deal of contact, by the 1990s Kanga was suffering from health problems, physical and mental. She gave interviews where she suggested that she and Charles were more than 'just friends' but by that stage she hadn't seen him in over 10 years.

From 1986 (year agreed on by both Charles and Diana when their marriage broke down and they started their affairs) Charles has only been involved with Camilla. Diana made the accusation that he was having a relationship with Tiggy Legge-Bourke, but Tiggy took legal action (it was a false accusation) and Diana backed down and was asked to apologise.

2- According to Christopher Andersen's book, After Diana from around 1976- 1996, C. had an on- again, off- again affair with Canadian woman Janet Jenkins. The book quotes love letters, and in an interview in the book, Jenkins confirms the affair. And of course Kanga for 25 years. The book claims C had affairs with at least a dozen women during this period. I do not know how accurate that claim is. But Andersen is a pretty reliable writer. I recommend you read the book.

Christopher Andersen's is far from a reliable writer!!!! He is one of the most unreliable and his books are absolute rubbish. He really has very little credibility as a royalty writer, only Kitty Kelley's reputation is worse. One of Andersen's books had the photoshopped picture of the Queen and Kate Middleton, supposedly meeting for the first time at Buckingham Palace. Only it was actually a picture of the Queen meeting Melinda Gates with Kate's face photoshopped over hers!! At the time the book was published Kate had not met the Queen. His latest book he states that the Queen will abdicate in favour of William and Kate after they are married. Rubbish, since the Queen had repeatedly said she's in the role for life and anyway the next in line is Charles, the Queen can't pick who comes next!

Janet Jenkin had a relationship with Charles in the 1970s, she has letters from Charles relating to that period, they have been offered up for auction. She's made a claim she had a one night stand with Charles in 1992 which may or may not be true. Charles didn't have a relationship with Kanga for 25 years, where does that number even come from!? His close friendship with Kanga lasted until his engagement to Diana, their friendship then fizzled out and by the late 1980s they had no contact at all.

 

[Mermaid1962]

I remember that when the Jenkins story first came out, there were suggestions that her son might have been a half-brother to Prince William. However, her son was never mentioned again in any allegations that she made about her relationship with Prince Charles or in any articles that I've come across about her.

Janet Jenkin had a relationship with Charles in the 1970s, she has letters from Charles relating to that period, they have been offered up for auction.

 

[Mirabel]

As for these women talking about their intimate relationships with the Prince of Wales, I guess they just want their own fifteen seconds/minutes of fame. However, it is rather disrespectful on their part.

They don't all talk about Charles.
I don't believe Jane Wellesley, Susan George, or Sabrina Guinness ever said anything, and I know there are others who kept quiet.

I think it's more than just fame; some of them who are talking about it may need the money.

 

[kakieanne]

As disrespectful as these (true?) revelations are to Prince Charles, they do make one appreciate the quiet dignity of Camilla.

But Charles is the Prince of Wales, so I would expect that there are a number of women in his past. For those who are talking, they will receive their money and their 15 minutes of fame (I don't imagine that the interest in their story will last much longer than that).

 

[XeniaCasaraghi]

I recall hearing that one of the reasons Camilla was actually accepted by the royal circle is because of her discretion. Even when it all hit the fan in the early 90s she still never talked and kept her secrets about Charles her own.

 

[grevinnan]

She was probably accepted because there was no choice. The Prince of Wales made his choice a long time ago and there simply was nothing that could change that. Camilla is now married to the heir to the throne and if all goes well will some day be the queen.

 

[XeniaCasaraghi]

There could very well be multiple reasons why the higher ups in the royal family and those that run them have accepted Camilla. To be sure, Charles had decided that he was never going to let her go. But a part from that Camilla seems to have a lot of qualities that are admired in a royal mistress, one of them being discretion and not having a need to be in the spotlight, which apparently is something that Kanga did not have.

 

[Oliv]

yeah, Camilla's discretion is a big plus. luckily, Kanga was not involved with Charles after he got married so she did not have too much to talk about (she talked about Charles years after their affair, though). maybe I am naive, but I honestly think Camilla is the only woman Charles has ever truly loved

 

[PrincessKaimi]

So is there a thread that organizes in one place the known consorts and mistresses of Prince Charles?

He's quite lucky, isn't he, to have had the playboy lifestyle (British Crown Prince style) and then settled down in time to leave many people with the impression that he's quite a well-behaved, diplomatic sort of chap who mostly just looks on at things from the sidelines.

I had totally forgotten about Kanga until I saw this thread. It's a strange feeling, remembering (for example) how many girlfriends the papers alleged the Prince to have had before he settled upon Diana and whether he was going to give up his more "adult" lifestyle to live with the young Lady Diana. It was riveting and then, from all appearances, Prince Charles gave up Kanga and Camilla and all the other exotic-sounding ladies and become quite the family man.

Wish I'd seen the documentary, as all the details are so very vague in my mind.

 

[XeniaCasaraghi]

The Kanga documentary is somewhere on youtube. I believe you can find it by typing in her name, or it might have been called "Prince Charles' Mistress" I can't recall if that is the exact name.
I guess it is a good thing that Charles essentially was a "sowing his wild oats" type a guy and not like Bill Clinton and JFK who can't seem to keep their pants on.

 

[Warren]

An interesting photo gallery back-catalog of Charles's female friends, most more recognisable by their maiden names.

In pictures: Prince Charles's relationships - Telegraph


A notable omission is Lucia Santa Cruz, daughter of the then Chilean ambassador to the Court of St James, who was Charles's girlfriend 1968-70.
She was invited to the Royal Wedding in 1981 and Charles and Camilla dropped in for tea while visiting Chile in 2009.

↓.Lucia Santa Cruz
Thumbnail images form cropped portions of larger photographs..

 

[Lenora]

Wed at last, the heiress no man could resist: Charles was besotted. She's dated everyone from Rod Stewart to Jack Nicholson. Now, at 58, Sabrina Guinness is finally marrying - to a man with his own very racy past | Mail Online

 

[Queen Camilla]

Lucia Santa Cruz was never Prince Charles' lover.

In November of 1994 she sued Jonathan Dimbleby.

Dimbleby publicly apologized and stated he would remove from future editions of the book the paragraph that had been misinterpreted as Charles and Lucia having an intimate relationship.

When the media had her dating Charles she was actually engaged to another man. I believe it is the same man she is now married to. She has known her husband since 1959.

 

[Duch_Luver_4ever]

The Kanga documentary was interesting, id heard a blip about her on a Diana doc about her dying soon after she did, so looked her up, such a rough end to her life.

I did enjoy the part her and Camilla dueling over Charles, and their alternate pregnancies had them in fits that the other would get one up on them while with child.

Had some good tidbits on how the upper crust looks at marriages, gives some insights and makes you ask questions about how things all played out with C&D&C&K ^^. Diana wore a few Kanga dresses as a snub to Camilla LOL.

Also depending on how you look at it late 96/1997 was a tough year for women in PoW's life, First Kanga was "pushed/fell" out of a high window at rehab, then Camillas crash in which she ran from the scene claiming that she was scared it was staged an as assassination attempt, before august 31st that year it sounded like crazy talk, then Diana's made her look not so crazy, then Kanga dies of blood poisoning claimed from her bedsores from being confined to a wheelchair a few months later. Sadly by then the nation was all grieved out, her funeral was a sad, poorly attended affair.

That beats the heck out of most actuarial tables I know of, im not going to use the CT word, but makes you think......

2- According to Christopher Andersen's book, After Diana from around 1976- 1996, C. had an on- again, off- again affair with Canadian woman Janet Jenkins. The book quotes love letters, and in an interview in the book, Jenkins confirms the affair. And of course Kanga for 25 years. The book claims C had affairs with at least a dozen women during this period. I do not know how accurate that claim is. But Andersen is a pretty reliable writer. I recommend you read the book.
3- As far as the world knows, Charles has been faithful to Camilla since the time of her marriage.

At least a dozen, eh, and up to 1996....sounds like good reading Camilla better watch out, like the saying goes, when you marry your mistress a job opens up^^

And to this day nobody can say who it was, although I do recall reading an article saying that it had been Diana after all. Not when the price of the photo relys on it I would have thought. One wonders about the truth of the incident, no reporter worth his salt goes anywhere without a photographer.I am well aware of what a Kanga dress looked liked, but still fail to see any significance, it was a dress that had been purchased and the messsage could have been, 'I can buy and sell you any day'!.They were part of the Highgrove set, but after a time, Were is the operative word. Dale distanced herself from everyone, it wasn't a case of they fell out with her, she ignored them. Very tragic scenario but as we have no idea when Charles and Camilla finally got back together, unlikely. We only have Dale's belief that she and Diana were 'close', after all Diana accused the Highgrove set, Charles' friends of being against her from the start. Two alligned broken hearts, I don't think so!

Ah the royal train story, always love to see the Camilla fans fall over themselves trying to explain that one away.....Diana was being too much of a cautious cat in the courtship I feel to risk the what she felt was the "big prize" by such a foolish endeavor with all the press on her, especially with all the houses of friends they spent weekends at, it would have given her ample chance if she fancied a pre marriage roll in the hay.

But given that many of those weekend visits were at the Parker Bowles place & Charles need for mothering and his once every three week schedule with Camilla, it seems totally something hed ask Camilla to do, plus maybe in Camillas mind if it tanked Diana's chances to boot well bonus marks, only Charles and the actual woman know and they're not talking.

As for Diana wearing the Kanga dress at live aid and maybe others, I agree with the documentary that it was a snub to C&C, in Dianas mind it seemed the enemy of my enemy is my friend, not besties, but someone who might be useful, type of friend.

 

[XeniaCasaraghi]

You do realize that special on Kanga was nothing but fantasy conjecture and filling in gaps with salacious interpretations? They made it sound like there was anything going on between Kanga and Charles past the early 70s and from other sources there wasn't. Its also funny how the special just ignores the other women Charles associated with between 1973 and the emergence of Diana; Amanda, Davina, Jane, Sarah etc. According to this show it was just Camilla vs Kanga until Diana showed up.

 

[Denville]

Pretty obvious that it had an agenda. I believe she was his mistress and problaby stayed freinds with him...but he had numerous other lovers...

 

[Denville]

I recall hearing that one of the reasons Camilla was actually accepted by the royal circle is because of her discretion. Even when it all hit the fan in the early 90s she still never talked and kept her secrets about Charles her own.

well it could be that she's just naturally sensible and discreet or it could be that she's not an idiot. She knows that discretion is prized by the RF and now that a few of C's exes have talked (most haven't) her being ultra discreet even when she was hated and attacked in the papers etc, would definitely make the RF think better of her.
Kanga seems to have been disturbed in her later years, physically and mentally unwell.. I suppose it is kinder to pity her, than to criticise her but her folly in talking would be the very way to get the RF and Charles to ignore her...I have read that during her affair with Charles she did chatter a bit to friends about it...

 

[Dee Anna]

Regarding Anna Wallace Prince Charles was seen deep in conversation with her at the reception to mark the wedding of the Marquess of Worcester c.1986. But he may only have been talking to her to avoid being embarrassed by Diana's behaviour on the dance floor with her then lover, the merchant banker Philip Dunne - she had her tongue down his ear at one point apparently!

Did she really?

"Apparently" says it all!

I'm sure if true, someone would have got a pic to the ever-ready-to-pay-press of the day; that kind of thing was indeed mega! ..... Crumbling aristo piles etc to upkeep .....

 

[Denville]

Did she really?

"Apparently" says it all!

I'm sure if true, someone would have got a pic to the ever-ready-to-pay-press of the day; that kind of thing was indeed mega! ..... Crumbling aristo piles etc to upkeep .....

IIRC it was a private party for a wedding so I doubt if there would be press there. Diana was getting flirty with men in the late 80s, perhaps because she was discovering her sexuality and realising how attractive she was, as she got over her bulimia. Might have been a cover for her real affair with James Hewitt.. also. I doubt if Philip Dunne was her lover, there was problaby only Hewitt, but she liked to flirt...
Charles however was by then well and truly out of love with her, and I think if she had been flrititng to try and attract his attention or make him jealous it just was not going to work. He had given up on the marriage, and was back with Camilla as confidante and mistress.

 

[Dee Anna]

IIRC it was a private party for a wedding so I doubt if there would be press there. Diana was getting flirty with men in the late 80s, perhaps because she was discovering her sexuality and realising how attractive she was, as she got over her bulimia. Might have been a cover for her real affair with James Hewitt.. also. I doubt if Philip Dunne was her lover, there was problaby only Hewitt, but she liked to flirt...
Charles however was by then well and truly out of love with her, and I think if she had been flrititng to try and attract his attention or make him jealous it just was not going to work. He had given up on the marriage, and was back with Camilla as confidante and mistress.

Only my opinion but I doubt Charles was ever "in love" with Diana, so nothing to fall out of!

He was heading to mid thirties, she was still a teenager and absolutely ready to give her heart - and who better than the Prince of Wales - when they had that meeting on a bale of hay!

Camilla didn't just come and go! She was always the lost one for Charles. If Diana had been older and more pragmatic (and made of ice!), who knows?!

 

[Osipi]

One thing both Kanga and Camilla had with Charles that Diana never had was a close, intimate friendship. It comes from having things in common, an understanding of each other to the point that they can be totally themselves with their friend and the freedom to have a life outside of that friendship.

Even though Kanga and Camilla married other people, they still remained close, personal friends of Charles. Their relationship with Charles was not solely based on physical attraction and lust but something deeper. I just wish that Charles had realized that is what he really needed to have a successful marriage and held out until he found the right woman.

 

[Denville]

O

Even though Kanga and Camilla married other people, they still remained close, personal friends of Charles. Their relationship with Charles was not solely based on physical attraction and lust but something deeper. I just wish that Charles had realized that is what he really needed to have a successful marriage and held out until he found the right woman.

I dont think it was all that great a friendship with Kanga. She remained friendly witht Charles because she was still part of that royal circle, and until she started acting oddly, he was loyal to his friends.. but I think once she became a bit unbalanced, he cooled it rapidly. I dont believe she was on ANYTHING like the same level of friendship iwht him as he had with Camilla.

 

[Curryong]

Yes, I agree. I think the whole romantic period was a lot briefer than with Camilla (before Charles's marriage.) Charles was friendly with Lord Tryon too and went fishing occasionally at his Icelandic fishing lodge. He and Kanga did remain quite good friends and Charles was fond of her, but I think the romance bit had cooled long before his marriage. Poor old Kanga had quite a sad life, all things considered.

 

[Denville]

. He and Kanga did remain quite good friends and Charles was fond of her, but I think the romance bit had cooled long before his marriage. Poor old Kanga had quite a sad life, all things considered.

Agree, I think that the fact that Diana befriended Kanga at first and bought a dress from her, shows she didn't think of her as a threat. But I read something by K's daughter a while ago, in a newspaper and SHE didn't seem overly sympathetic to her mother...

 

[Curryong]

I read the article too. She was estranged from her mother for months before her death, but I guess that at 17 your mother having mental issues and behaving erratically was rather a lot to cope with, especially when combined with the paraplegia which probably left Kanga feeling very frustrated. Also parents breaking up and remembering rows etc. taints memories. I'd say she was probably closer to her father, who certainly appears to be a very nice person.

Kanga's daughter was being as honest as she could be, I think, and I believe she certainly would have coped and been more understanding had it all happened say five years later.

 

[Denville]

I read the article too. She was estranged from her mother for months before her death, but I guess that at 17 your mother having mental issues and behaving erratically was rather a lot to cope with, especially when combined with the paraplegia which probably left Kanga feeling very frustrated. Also parents breaking up and remembering rows etc. taints memories. I'd say she was probably closer to her father, who certainly appears to be a very nice person.

Kanga's daughter was being as honest as she could be, I think, and I believe she certainly would have coped and been more understanding had it all happened say five years later.

Its some time since I read the article, well briefly skimmed it, and my memory's bad these days so maybe it is actually a few years ago. But I thought it was very badly bred behaviour on her part. If she was estranged from her mother, it is not something to blab to the papers about. I'm sure it was awful for her, and Kanga was clearly silly at best of times and had become unbalanced.. but it is a private issue. Still the fact that she, K's own daughter, didn't seem to remember her mother fondly, seem to make it likely that Charles probably ended the friendship when she became difficult.