Paul Burrell , who was a British Royal Household servant and butler to the late Princess of Wales, told Closer magazine the documentary “may draw up scandal and private details about Diana”, which will make for uncomfortable viewing for Harry.
The film is a sequel to the 2017 documentary Diana: In Her Own Words and is set to be released on Netflix next year in conjunction with the 25th anniversary of Diana’s death.
According to reports , it will include audio and video tapes of Diana that were made to help Andrew Morton write his biography of the Princess in 1992.
Mr Burrell, 62, told the publication the video tapes are “likely to be conversations with [Diana’s] voice coach Peter Settelen and the audio tapes she sent back and forth to her biographer, Andrew Morton”.
“There’ll no doubt be more secrets unveiled and it’ll show more of an insight into who she was,” he was quoted as saying. “Around that time, she was extremely paranoid – she believed she was being bugged by the press and followed. She had me lifting up floorboards and disconnecting the phone at some points.”
Mr Burrell, who Diana has described as her “rock”, added: “[Harry] has always hated the fact his mother was exploited – and now the same is happening on the very same platform he and Meghan are working on.”
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex signed a deal with Netflix last September to produce documentaries, docs-series, feature films, scripted shows and children’s programming.
The deal came six months after the couple officially stepped down from being working members of the royal family. The Sussexes also signed a deal with Spotify for a podcast and yesterday, their Archewell Foundation confirmed a multi-year partnership with consumer goods company Procter & Gamble.
Explaining how the documentary on Harry’s mother could become an issue for Harry and Meghan, Mr Burrell said the couple may have separate and conflicting interests in the film being made.
He said Harry may feel “torn and uncomfortable about his recent actions” and the upcoming documentary about his mother “will no doubt cement those feelings”.
But things may become “awkward” if Meghan views Diana as a “role model and feel she can relate to her”. If the Duchess welcomes “more insight into Diana’s life and for them to be compared”, the different feelings between the couple “could create a divide” and “even drive them apart”.