Royal butler 'stole costly items from Diana after her death'

The former butler to Diana, Princess of Wales, took advantage of his access to her apartments at Kensington Palace after her death to loot nearly 300 of her possessions, ranging from photograph albums to nightwear, the Old Bailey was told yesterday.

The prosecution alleges that Paul Burrell, who was a royal butler for nine years, first to the Prince of Wales and Diana and then to the Princess alone, gathered a collection of "intimate and personal" memorabilia that would have been of huge value on the open market.

It comprised 284 items belonging to Diana, four items belonging to the Prince of Wales and 22 documents belonging to Prince William, mostly cards and photographs of him posing with supermodels including Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington and Claudia Schiffer.

The court was told that the butler, 44, who denies three charges of theft, left Kensington Palace in June 1998, 10 months after Diana's death in a car crash. Last year, when police searched the converted barn in Farndon, Cheshire, that Mr Burrell shares with his wife, Maria, 48, and their two sons, they found boxes of property throughout. A bronze ballerina and a sketch of Prince William were on display. William Boyce QC, for the prosecution, said: "They were things that someone should not just keep."

Opportunity presented itself when Mr Burrell, described by the Princess as her "rock", was asked to assist those in charge of cataloguing Diana's possessions for inheritance tax purposes and for the completion of her will, the jury was told.

Mr Burrell moved home twice after June 1998, meaning he had twice "packed, moved, stored and kept" his alleged haul and would surely have realised he had possessions that he knew he was not supposed to have, the jury was told.

The police search found items including a bound volume of original paintings given to Charles and Diana as a wedding present and a silver plaque of the Queen Mother. A photo album filled with pictures of Diana, including pictures of her at school, was also found in Mr Burrell's attic, Mr Boyce said. Referring to the intimate nature of the images, Mr Boyce said they "should never go outside the family".

Among photographic negatives in Mr Burrell's possession were images of a young Prince William and Prince Harry in the bath. Of these, Mr Boyce said: "These are hospital shots. Why are they anywhere other than in a Royal or Spencer archive?" A photograph taken shortly after Prince Harry's birth showed Princess Diana sitting up in bed with him, while another featured Prince Charles holding the baby as Prince William kissed his brother.

Mr Boyce said the items included a letter Diana wrote to William, using her pet name for him. He read the opening sentence: "My darling Wombat. It was lovely to catch a kiss and a hug from you this morning, even though I would like to run away with you." Mr Boyce said: "Would you put it in your desk in your study ­ or would you not sleep until you made sure it had reached Prince William?"

Another letter was from Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, to the late Princess. It began "Darling Diana" and was signed "Yours affectionately, Granny." Mr Boyce asked the jury several times to imagine how much individual items would be worth if sold. Letters to Diana from Mother Teresa and one from the Princess to John Major when he was Prime Minister were described as potentially valuable.

Police also allegedly found a scarf in a bag that resembled one worn by Diana when she posed for a photograph near the Taj Mahal. The bag had a Post-it note on it that said: "Scarves worn in Pakistan." Mr Boyce said: "You may recall the Princess sitting on a bench in front of the Taj Mahal in rather splendid isolation with a scarf flowing around her neck."

Nearly 50 CDs, records and videotapes were discovered, all signed by the Princess. Mr Boyce said: "It seems to have been a tradition in the Spencer family to write their names on things ... I pause for you to consider the potential value of one CD autographed by Diana."

Other items included nightwear, hats and dresses, and crystal glass designed for Kensington Palace. The court was told that many of the items, including correspondence between Diana and her husband, were so private that it was incredible they had not been sent with the Princess's other possessions to Althorp, the Spencer family seat in Northamptonshire.

Mr Burrell had told police: "I had absolutely no dishonest intent ­ only to preserve as decently and respectfully as possible the memory of the Princess of Wales ... At some point I intended to do what was appropriate with them but the horrific events of her death made me sure that to hold on to the items was the only safe way of protecting her memory."

The case is expected to last up to six weeks.