Diana Unheard, a new three-part documentary series built around previously unheard audio recordings of Princess Diana, is being readied for an international rollout, with Cineflix taking rights to the project and positioning it as a major factual launch at MIPCOM in Cannes.
The series comes from Love Monday TV, the UK independent producer whose previous monarchy-focused programming includes Her Majesty The Queen: Behind Closed Doors for ITV and William and Harry: Love and Betrayal for Channel 5. Cineflix Rights will handle worldwide sales on the limited series.
At the center of Diana Unheard are secretly taped conversations Diana had in 1991 with her friend James Colthurst. Those recordings formed the basis of Andrew Morton’s book Diana: Her True Story. For the documentary, Love Monday worked with both Morton and Colthurst to secure access to several hours of tapes, and both men appear in the series.
The recordings capture Diana speaking candidly about her life, her loves and the royal family. According to the source material, the tapes include her discussing Prince Charles and Camilla, now King Charles III and Queen Camilla, as well as the then Prince Andrew, who has since been stripped of his royal titles following scrutiny of his ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
A Diana Story Told Through Her Own Voice
The producers are framing the project as a corrective to portrayals that have emphasized Diana’s vulnerability. Kerene Barefield, Creative Director at Love Monday TV, said the team wanted to reconsider the way Diana’s story has often been told.
“In making Diana Unheard, we wanted to challenge the narrative that has too often portrayed Diana, Princess of Wales simply as a victim of her circumstances,” Barefield said.
She added: “This is Diana not as a passive victim of events, but as a woman taking control of her own narrative and risking everything to make her voice heard. Diana Unheard restores authorship of one of the most scrutinized lives in modern history to the woman at its center.”
The timing lands amid renewed public discussion around Diana and the royal family. This week, the Palace and Diana’s brother, Earl Spencer, have been involved in a war of words over Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, his memoir about her life and death.
Richard Life, SVP Acquisitions and Co-productions at Cineflix Rights, pointed to the audio archive as the element that distinguishes the series in a crowded field of royal documentaries.
“What really sets Diana Unheard apart is the unique opportunity to hear several hours of intimate recordings of the Princess; her own story in her own voice at a pivotal point in her life,” Life said.
He continued: “Thirty years on, Diana remains a global icon and source of endless fascination for viewers. We are thrilled to be representing this premium limited series from Love Monday TV, and look forward to launching it to our international buyers at MIPCOM.”
What Happens Next?
Diana Unheard will be taken to MIPCOM in Cannes as one of Cineflix Rights’ major factual launches, with the company handling worldwide sales. No broadcaster, platform or release date was included in the supplied information.