Princess Diana regretted Panorama interview and 'never wanted to divorce Charles', best friend says

A woman who says she was "best friends" with Diana, Princess of Wales, believes the royal never wanted to divorce Prince Charles and deeply regretted speaking to Martin Bashir.

Simone Simmons, a spiritual healer who befriended Diana in the final three years of her life, recalled a conversation she had with the princess hours after the Panorama interview aired in 1995.

She says Diana called her on the phone asking what she thought of the interview.

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"[Diana said] 'What did you think?' I said: 'Oh God, you made a real prat out of yourself. But not only that. What about the children?' She said: 'Oh my God, I didn't think,' and then she started crying."

Simmons has spoken to The Telegraph UK ahead of the 25th anniversary of Diana's death, on Wednesday.

The healer met Diana at the end of 1993 at the Hale Clinic where the princess was a regular.

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Soon after Diana crossed paths with Bashir, who began feeding the princess lies and misinformation to win her trust, convincing her to do the infamous interview claiming that people close to her had been spying on her.

He claimed Simmons was one of the "mystics and clairvoyants" as the source of the false information given to her, along with Diana's medium Rita Rogers.

Last year, an inquiry by Lord Dyson found the journalist had been "dishonest" and used "deceitful methods" to win her trust, suggesting Diana's friends and aides had turned on her.

Simmons says Bashir "should be in jail".

"Has forgery now become legal? He made Diana completely paranoid.

"I was the one warning her against him. Diana was very naive."

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After that interview aired, in which Diana famous declared "there were three of us in this marriage", referring to Prince Charles' affair with Camilla, the princess revealed she never wanted her relationship with the Prince of Wales to end.

Simmons told The Telegraph: "She said, 'Simone, I never wanted to divorce Charles. I always loved him'.

"I told her she should never have given that interview, but who encouraged her to do it? It was Fergie and Ruby Wax.

"Together, they encouraged her to do it. That's what Diana said. She wouldn't lie to me."

Simmons, who has kept a number of Diana's voicemails left on her answering machine, says they used to speak five times a week.

Diana, she claims, "really regretted pushing" Fergie away.

The sister-in-laws fell out after Fergie published a book claiming she got warts after borrowing Diana's shoes, while the Princess of Wales was reportedly annoyed at the Duchess of York constantly speaking about her to on American television.