Two famous names that you'd probably never think to associate together are Kurt Russell and the late Princess Diana. But on The Late Late Show with James Corden, the beloved actor opened up about how he crossed paths with Diana years earlier and actually let her stay in his Colorado Ranch he shares with longtime love Goldie Hawn.
"I did a movie called Backdraft that there was a royal premiere of in London and sat between Lady Di and Prince Charles...Interesting experience at the time..."
Cordon and Russell laughed knowingly considering it was when the royal relationship wasn't thriving, to put it mildly. If you follow the Royal family at all, you can do the math that the movie Backdraft was released in 1991, just a few years before Diana and Charles finalized their incredibly messy and public divorce.
"But during the course of the evening, we got to talking about this and that and the paparazzi she had to deal with so I mentioned that we lived on a ranch in Colorado that might be a nice getaway. And she said well maybe sometime I could do that."
And a few years later, Diana did just that and flew to the United States with her sons Prince William and Prince Harry for a getaway that she most likely really needed at the time. It was actually her friend and sister-in-law, Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York (known to the world as Fergie), who helped make it happen.
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"And years later Fergie, who Goldie knows, called and she worked it out. I guess Diana wanted to go with the boys and so they were welcome and they came and stayed ten days at the ranch and they had a great time," Russell explained.
As if Diana couldn't be more likable, Russell added that during her trip she became close with their housekeeper, Bonnie, to who she ended up sending Christmas cards every year. According to Express, Hawn has also opened up about Diana's vacation to their home in a 2011 episode of The View.
The actress explained, "Fergie called me. This is in the early '90s... She said, 'My girlfriend is in need of a place to go where there's no paparazzi. Could she go to the ranch?' And we (partner Kurt Russell and I) said, 'Of course'.
"So they came to the ranch. We have 75-acres in Aspen (Colorado). She (Diana) called me, and she jumped on the bed, she picked up the phone, and she said, 'I'm having the most amazing time. There's so many pillows on your bed." The kids (Prince William and Prince Harry) were laughing. They had the time of their life. ATVing everywhere, no paparazzi. She said, 'Goldie, it was the best vacation of my life.'"
This article was originally published in February of 2021.
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