Royal Photographer Who Took Princess Diana’s Intrusive Photos Regrets What He Did

As one of the most popular members of the royal family, Princess Diana had to live with constant media attention and the fact that the press took pictures of her without her consent. Now a photographer who once took controversial pictures of the princess in a bikini says that he regretted what he did back then.

“I probably wouldn’t do it again, not anymore,” royal photographer Arthur Edwards revealed in the 2019 Sunday Night documentary “Royal Baby.” He specializes in taking pictures of the royal family and works for the British publication The Sun.

Aside from feeling regretful, however, Edwards has a more compelling reason for not wanting to take intrusive photographs of Princess Diana anymore if she were alive these days. “Well, also, now, Will would sue you,” the photographer quipped.

Edwards recounted how he was able to take Princess Diana’s photograph in February of 1982, when she was pregnant with Prince William. “Charles and Diana were going off to the Bahamas on holiday and I said: ‘yes, let’s go!’” the photographer shared. “We were of course hidden in the bushes and I got these pictures of Diana pregnant in a bikini on the beach with the Prince of Wales.”

Edwards admitted that it was very inappropriate of him to take the photos, which created a big stir when they were published. “They were intrusive pictures,” he recalled. “There was a massive row here and in the House of Commons. There were questions asked.”

Even Queen Elizabeth became involved as she was furious over the photos’ release. “The Queen was very annoyed and horrified about this, so she called a meeting at Buckingham Palace of all the editors of the national newspapers,” Edwards recalled. “She said: ‘you simply have to leave Princess of Wales alone.’”

Members of the British royal family have to deal constantly with photographers wanting to take their photos even at the most inappropriate of times. For instance, Prince William’s wife, Kate Middleton, was once photographed sunbathing topless while vacationing in the south of France in 2012.

The pictures were published in the French magazine Closer. The royal couples sued, and the photographer who took the intrusive photos was fined $120,000.