A woman who tragically miscarried all eight of her babies has revealed how Princess Diana offered her comfort in secret meetings following her devastating loss.
Mandy Allwood, now 53, made headlines across the world in 1996 when she revealed she was expecting octuplets. Sadly, she lost the six boys and two girls, who were born over three days and three nights, at just 24 weeks.
Now, 22 years after the deaths of Mandy’s babies, she has revealed the secret bond she shared with Prince William and Harry’s late mother, in an exclusive interview with the Daily Star.
Mandy, who is now separated from the father of her babies Paul Hudson, told the news outlet she met Diana at lavish hotels like the Ritz and the Dorchester in London to speak to her about her battle with depression following the difficult time.
“She gave me a hug, showed me lots of support. When we first met she said to me ‘thank you for keeping me off the front pages for a change’,” Mandy told the publication.
“We talked about her depression and my panic attacks and she told me she had been there too. We spoke about her family and she talked a lot about Charles and Camilla.”
She claimed the princess first got in touch five weeks after she miscarried, with a lunch invitation sent through the post. From there, she said they met twice – once in October 1996 and again the following month, just less than a year before Diana’s tragic death in a car accident.
Following strict royal protocol, the pair did not speak of the meetings and did not exchange numbers or take photos at the time.
Mandy, from Warwickshire, England, spoke openly about expecting her eight babies in 1996 and was even interviewed by TV star Rolanda Watts while she was pregnant.
However, following her devastating miscarriage, she reportedly battled depression for years and struggled with suicidal thoughts as well as alcohol addiction.
Speaking to the Sun about her grief in 2015, she said she still feels her babies moving now and again, adding: “I will never ever be able to forget because I am always thinking about them in my head, but also because I can still feel my babies inside me constantly.
“Ever since I gave birth I have felt them kicking and moving every day.”
Mandy will mark the 22nd anniversary of Kypros, Adam, Martyn, Cassius, Nelson, Donald, Kitali and Layne’s deaths by visiting their graves alone.