Princess Diana’s ‘first work contract’ up for sale

Princess Diana’s “first” work contract, in which she might have lied about her age to get a job, is up for auction.

Lady Diana Spencer completed the application form for elite nanny agency Solve Your Problem Ltd in May 1979.

Largely filled out by the 17-year-old in black ink, it is thought she deliberately listed her date of birth as 1960 instead of 1961 to “get a job quicker, or receive more pay”.

It is expected to fetch up to £8,000 at auction in Bristol on 30 April.

Andrew Stowe, from Auctioneum Ltd, said: “This is an incredibly important piece of history.

“Getting your first job is a big moment in anyone’s life, let alone when that person becomes one of the most famous figures of the 20th Century.”

Princess Diana was considered to be one of the most famous women in the world – with both her charity work and private life making headlines.

She was killed in a car crash in August 1997, when her sons Prince William and Prince Harry were aged just 15 and 12.

At the time of her death, 36-year-old Princess Diana had been divorced from Prince Charles for a year following four years of separation.

The document now up for sale was filled out by a teenage Diana, just a few weeks after moving to London.

Her address is listed as Cadogan Place SW1, where she temporarily lived before moving to her own London flat at Colherne Court, Kensington, a few months later.

On the application she has incorrectly listed her date of birth as “July 1st 1960” when she was born on 1 July 1961.

Mr Stowe said the incorrect date made her appear over 18 years old.

“Our client had always been told that this was done deliberately, in order that Diana would appear older and therefore more likely to secure a job with the agency, or at least a higher rate of pay,” he said.

“It could, of course, just be a simple oversight.”

The document is thought to be Diana’s first official work contract to undertake various short-term jobs as a nanny, mother’s help and child carer.

Prior to this, in 1978 Diana had worked for friends and family, in an unofficial capacity, and some of them are noted as referees on the contract.

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