Unearthed snaps of Princess Diana, baby Prince William up for auction
A set of never-before-seen photos of the British royal family is going up for auction in the UK.
The 22 incredible images — featuring the late Queen Elizabeth II, the late Princess Diana and a baby Prince William — were taken at Balmoral Castle in Scotland in September 1982.
The photos, which show the royals looking happy and relaxed, belonged to John King — a close friend of the family and member of the House of Lords.
Willingham Auctions in Cambridgeshire is auctioning off the set, as well as the original negatives, on March 4 — and they’re expected to fetch a pretty penny.
“The sky is the limit on the price. We have never had anything like this before,” auctioneer Stephen Drake excitedly told the Mirror.
“Plenty of pictures have been sold of Princess Diana before, but nothing as relaxed as this and nothing as early in her marriage,” he added.
At the time, Diana was only 21, while baby William was just 3 months old.
One historic photo features the now-King Charles, then age 33, doting over his firstborn baby.
“The photo of Charles holding William is such an amazing photo. He looks like such a proud happy father,” Drake declared.
“In the photos, Diana, Charles and William look like a complete family group,” he added. “You see a lot of press photos but these are nothing like those, they are being photographed as normal people, which for royalty is an amazing experience to see.”
Of course, Charles and Diana’s domestic bliss did not last. The couple split in 1992 — a decade after the snaps were taken. They divorced in 1996, a year before Diana’s tragic death in a car crash.
Because the images are also coming with the negatives, Drake added that whoever purchases the set will own the copyright.
“The collection of photos is a real one-off: You will never come across another set of photos like this,” he explained.
King — who ran British Airways and was integral to Margaret Thatcher’s regime — died in 2005 at the age of 86. He was knighted by the queen in 1979.
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