Princess Diana Planned Move to Africa with Dr. Hasnat Khan, Brother Claims

Princess Diana had made plans to relocate to South Africa with her then-lover, Dr. Hasnat Khan, in an effort to escape her "petulant" ex-husband, King Charles, according to her brother, Charles Spencer. Spencer details these plans in his newly released memoir, "Swan Song: My Sister, Diana."

Diana reportedly approached Dr. Christian Barnard, the pioneer of the first successful human heart transplant, to inquire about potential medical positions for Khan at his hospital in Cape Town. Spencer writes that his sister, described as "prone to naive yet impossible dreams," hoped Africa could serve as a sanctuary for her and Khan, allowing them to build a life together.

According to Spencer, life in England had become "intolerable" for Diana by March 1997, when she visited him in Cape Town. He recounts her hope that the "sublimely beautiful tip of Africa" could offer them refuge. "Might they, she dared hope, move there together, and carve out a life?" he writes.

Diana and Khan, a British-Pakistani cardiothoracic surgeon, maintained a private relationship for two years before their split in the summer of 1997, weeks before her death in a Paris car crash. Diana famously referred to Khan as "my dishy doctor."

Spencer notes that Diana had previously searched for a secluded rural location in England for a peaceful life with a past partner. With her sons, Princes William and Harry, attending Eton College, Diana was exploring new possibilities. During her visit to Cape Town, she also met with President Nelson Mandela, with Spencer's assistance.

Spencer recounts that during the trip, Diana was often anxious, waiting for calls from Khan, who he states "rarely" called. The couple first met in 1995, and their relationship developed after Diana began visiting Khan at the Royal Brompton hospital.

To maintain their privacy, Diana employed various methods to see Khan, including wearing disguises to jazz clubs and arranging for Khan to be hidden in a car to enter Kensington Palace. She even asked her butler, Paul Burrell, to find a priest to marry them, a notion Khan later dismissed as "ridiculous."

In 2008, during an inquest into Diana's death, Khan admitted that he feared marriage to her would have been "hell" due to her public profile. He also revealed that while they had considered moving to Pakistan, Diana ultimately rejected the idea, stating, "I knew I would not be able to live a normal life."

Khan stated that Diana ended their relationship after returning from a vacation with the Al-Fayed family in July 1997. He expressed anger when she subsequently began dating Dodi Al-Fayed, who also died in the Paris crash.

Spencer also addresses other controversial claims in his book, including an assertion that King Charles sounded "giddily elated" upon hearing of Diana's death, which Buckingham Palace has disputed. He further alleges that Charles had expressed a desire for Queen Elizabeth II to abdicate.

Spencer maintains the accuracy of his recollections, even in the face of official denials. He describes Diana as a "dynamic character, full of love, charisma and self doubt," who made the world a better place despite her early death and a lifelong craving for love.