Author Hilary Mantel has questioned the “princess myth” surrounding Diana, the Princess of Wales, saying the late mother of two was not as compassionate as she had been seen. The two-time Man Booker Prize winner was apparently not fooled by Diana’s “rebel” persona.

The recent UK Channel 4 documentary “Diana in Her Own Words” showed footage of Diana’s television interviews, in which she was seen answering questions in a seemingly uncomfortable fashion. While others saw her mannerisms refreshing from the usual staid demeanour of royals, Mantel thought Diana was actually just acting spoilt.

“They were trailed as revealing a princess who is ‘candid’ and ‘uninhabited.’ Yet never has she appeared so self-conscious and recalcitrant. Squirming, twitching, avoiding the camera’s eye, she describes herself hopefully as ‘a rebel,’ on the grounds that she liked to do the opposite of everyone else,” Mantel wrote on the The Guardian. “You want to veil the lens and explain: That is reaction, not rebellion.

“Throwing a tantrum when thwarted doesn’t make you a free spirit. Rolling your eyes and shrugging doesn’t prove you are brave. And because people say ‘trust me,’ it doesn’t means (sic) they’ll keep your secrets.”

She understood why the people loved Diana, though. The “Wolf Hall” author said the British public wanted to love a female role model, and at that time, there were hardly any.

“A soft-eyed, fertile blond, she represented conjugal and maternal love, and what other source did we have? Until Tony Blair took office as a fresh-faced Prince Charming, we had female leaders, but they were old and their cupboards were bare of food and love: A queen who, even at Diana’s death, was reluctant to descend from the cold north, and a prime minister formerly known as Maggie Thatcher, Milk Snatcher.”

Although she gave Diana credit for her charitable works, saying Diana found “affinity” with the rejected, which Diana perhaps also felt herself from other royals, Mantel said Prince Charles’ then-wife did not do anything with blind compassion. She was referring to Diana’s handshake with an AIDS patient in 1987. By then, it was incorrectly thought that the sexually transmitted disease could be passed by touch.

“Even in the unenlightened days of 1987, only the bigoted and ignorant thought casual contact would infect them, but any gesture from Diana was worth years of public education and millions in funding. She hung around Mother Teresa, and did it while wearing couture; she moved towards suffering, rather than swerving from it.”

This is not the first time Mantel has criticised a fan favourite on the royal family. She previously said Kate Middleton, now known as the Duchess of Cambridge, was a “plastic princess” manufactured by the British monarchy and whose only purpose was to breed to continue the line’s succession.

The documentary, which marked the 20th anniversary of Diana’s death, also featured Diana’s sons, Princes William and Harry, who called their mother “ordinary." They gave a warm account of her life, praising her compassion and her spirit. The royal princes said it would be the last time they would talk about their mother in public.

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