Diana 'deeply hurt' at claims she had cellulite

At the time, Diana gave the impression that she didn't care much about the gossip.

But William and Harry said she was deeply hurt by speculation about her appearance and they had to cheer her up 'many times'.

She was upset because she tried so hard to look glamorous and to maintain her figure by working out in the gym, the princes said.

Diana struggled with bulimia, her crumbling marriage, and her stormy relationship with the Queen and other members of the royal family.

But 24-year-old William said comments about cellulite were particularly wounding.

He said: "For any woman, I imagine, it's just outrageous that these people sit behind their desks and comment on it. There were many times we just sort of had to cheer her up and tell her she was the best thing ever."

He added: "Someone said she had cellulite or something like that. As a woman in the public eye, she tried so hard and was so glamorous, always in the gym."

One specific case, in April, 1996, caused much controversy at the time when Diana was nicknamed Princess Lumpy Legs. The princess, then 35, was photographed leaving the Harbour Club fitness centre in London wearing skimpy shorts. Commentators had long debates over whether she had cellulite running all down her thighs.

Reports at the time said that when Diana heard about the pictures, friends urged her not to look at them but she could not resist.

Next day the princess herself added to the speculation by arriving at the Chelsea club covered up in a long overcoat. Asked why she wore the coat, she said she was cold, but observers pointed out it was the hottest day of the year so far.

The incident stirred a major debate about 30-something women's nightmare of the dreaded cellulite and whether, in view of Diana's strict fitness regime, anything could be done to avoid it.

Two days later the princess denied she had cellulite in a story she leaked. The dimples on her thighs were imprints from a bar stool she had been sitting on for some time before leaving the club, she said.

She had no intention of making an official comment, but give her time and she would ensure that another photo could be taken of her bare-legged, proving she was cellulite-free, said the report.

But the following November, international reports again suggested she had cellulite when she was photographed sitting with her legs crossed in Sydney while on an official visit to Australia.

The princes' interview with NBC TV in America now reveals how pained their mother really was by comments suggesting her carefully-toned body was less than perfect.

And they said they believe people will always be fascinated by their mother.

Harry, 21, said: "I can't see it ever ending really. People will always have a fascination about her."

And William chipped in: "At the same time there are a lot of people feeding it, and unnecessarily, I might add. I'm afraid that there's always people out there who want to make money."

The interview with NBC TV broadcast in the US early on Tuesday morning was given by the princes as part of the build-up to their July 1 Wembley Stadium concert to mark what would have been Diana's 46th birthday.

Previously-released excerpts have revealed they will forever be plagued by doubts about what happened "in that tunnel" on the night their mother died.

They also said that not a day goes by when she is not in their thoughts and the decade since her death has passed "very, very slowly."