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    One Royal Employee's "Jaw Hit the Floor" After Princess Diana Revealed the Secret Item She "Kept Stuffed Into an Envelope in a Bottom Drawer"

    "In April 1997, she decided to hand it over..."

    Amy Mackelden's avatar
    By Amy Mackelden
    Published 27 July 2026 In News

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    Princess Diana wearing a white evening dress and the Queen Mary tiara at a visit to the British Embassy in Washington with Prince Charles on November 11th, 1985
    (Image credit: Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
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    It's hard to believe Princess Diana died almost 30 years ago. Since then, interest in the former Princess of Wales has only increased, and many ex-Royal Family employees have written books about their experiences. According to one of Princess Diana's former butlers, the royal kept one secret hidden in a drawer in her home.

    Writing in his book A Royal Duty, former royal butler Paul Burrell revealed that Princess Diana used to sell her old clothing in order to generate money to spend on her sons, Prince Harry and Prince William.

    According to Burrell, Diana's old clothing included designer labels such as Chanel, Versace, Catherine Walker—a Princess Kate favorite—and Armani. "An outfit worth £2,000 [approximately $2,660] would be sold for around £200 [approximately $266], and somebody, somewhere, would be walking around in the princess's clothes," the ex-butler wrote.

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    Princess Diana wearing a charm bracelet and red outfit

    "These regular sales netted the princess around [$14,650], which she kept stuffed into an envelope in a bottom drawer."

    (Image credit: Getty Images)

    Diana would allegedly generate a lot of money from selling her old clothing.

    "These regular sales netted the princess around £11,000 [approximately $14,650], which she kept stuffed into an envelope in a bottom drawer," Burrell claimed.

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    Unsurprisingly, the princess's decision to keep a large amount of cash at home shocked some of her employees.

    "[I]n April 1997, she decided to hand it over to [her financial manager] Michael Gibbins, whose jaw hit the floor when he opened the envelope," per Burrell.

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    "[I]n April 1997, she decided to hand it over to [her financial manager], whose jaw hit the floor when he opened the envelope."

    (Image credit: Getty)

    The ex-butler continued, "He took the money and banked it, unaware of how such a sum had been raised. Even the accountant had been left in the dark about the princess's most private finances—until then."

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    Weekend Editor

    Amy Mackelden is the weekend editor at Marie Claire, where she covers celebrity and royal family news. She was the weekend editor at Harper’s BAZAAR for three years, where she covered breaking celebrity and entertainment news, royal stories, fashion, beauty, and politics. Prior to that, she spent a year as the joint weekend editor for Marie Claire, ELLE, and Harper's BAZAAR, and two years as an entertainment writer at Bustle. Her additional bylines include Cosmopolitan, People, The Independent, HelloGiggles, Biography, Shondaland, Best Products, New Statesman, Heat, and The Guardian. Her work has been syndicated by publications including Town & Country, Good Housekeeping, Esquire, Delish, Oprah Daily, Country Living, and Women's Health. Her celebrity interviews include Jennifer Aniston, Jessica Chastain, the cast of Selling Sunset, Emma Thompson, Jessica Alba, and Penn Badgley. In 2015, she delivered an academic paper at Kimposium, the world's first Kardashian conference.

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