Charles Spencer Shares Rare Childhood Snap of Princess Diana From 60 Years Ago in Latest Post
Charles Spencer’s latest throwback photo offers another touching glimpse of the close bond he shared with his late sister.
Following Princess Diana’s untimely death on August 31, 1997, her brother, Charles Spencer, was left devastated by the loss of his ‘best friend.’ He has since kept her memory alive by occasionally sharing nostalgic family photos. A week after what would have been her 65th birthday on July 1, he posted a sweet childhood throwback of the siblings playing on a wooden swing. Taken when Diana was around 5 years old and Spencer just 1, the picture sent royal fans on a heartfelt trip down memory lane.
Spencer posted the photo on his Instagram with the caption, “Summer moment, 60 years ago.” The 1966 image shows him in blue bloomers and a white T-shirt, holding the chains of a swing while looking down. Beside him, his late sister is seen in a blue-and-white floral leotard, hanging from the metal bars with her signature short bob, both of them sporting bright blonde hair. The grainy picture was taken at Althorp House, where Diana was later laid to rest. Althorp has belonged to the Spencer family for more than 500 years and serves as the ancestral seat of the Earls Spencer.
This isn’t the first time Spencer has honored his sister’s legacy with sweet childhood photos. Last year on July 29, what would have been her 44th wedding anniversary to King Charles, he shared a picture of them as children in swimsuits, reminiscing about their summer days by the water. He captioned the post, “A long-ago summer, by the swimming pool at our childhood home, Park House, Sandringham… Diana and I were both proudly showing off our swimming badges (sewn onto our swimming costumes). These were awarded (sparingly) by Mrs. Lansdowne, a fairly terrifying but very gifted swimming instructor, who came to stay each year.”
And for her 64th birthday, he had shared another rare photo from their early years. The black-and-white image showed Diana and him riding a camel at her sixth birthday party—a surprise visit from “Bert the Camel,” hired by their father, Edward John Spencer, from a local zoo. He captioned the post, “Another July 1st, from long ago… 1967, in fact: for Diana’s 6th birthday party, my father (standing, left) to huge excitement had secured the services of Bert the Camel, from Thorney Wildlife Park, in Peterborough.”