Published in hardback and paperback (above left) in the USA by Lyons Press (an imprint of Rowman & Littlefield), and in ebook; and in the UK by Lume Books in ebook (right) and paperback. Nominated for the People’s Book Prize 2018.
Jane was filmed by the BBC for a television documentary (for ITV) about the Queen (when still a princess) in wartime which used Princess as a source. It was broadcast on ITV on 22 April 2020 and in the USA on PBS in early May 2020. See Events page at https://janedismore.com/past-events/
SAMPLE REVIEWS: Jane Ridley (historian & author of The Heir Apparent: A Life of Edward VII): ‘Fascinating. Packed with rich new research. A gripping read.’ Sarah Bradford (author of Elizabeth: A Biography of Her Majesty the Queen): ‘Excellently researched: a readable and interesting book with new material.’ More reviews here
About PRINCESS: In November 2017 the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary. As a 13-year-old Princess, she fell in love with Prince Philip of Greece, an ambitious naval cadet, and they married when she was 21; when she suddenly became Queen at 25, their lives changed forever. Philip has been her great support, but fortunately she also had a solid foundation that helped prepare her for a life dedicated to duty. With previously unpublished material and unique memories from friends and relatives who have known her since childhood, this book looks afresh and in richer depth at her life as Princess, glittering yet isolating. Vivid detail and anecdotes reveal more about her, the era in which she grew up and the people who shaped her life. The archives of royal confidante Lady Desborough and Private Secretary Sir Alec Hardinge reveal unseen letters from the Princess and the royal family, giving intimate insights into their lives and minds.
Here too is the Princess with the aristocratic Bowes Lyons, her mother’s family, who featured significantly in her life, yet rarely appear in books. The author sheds new light on anomalies surrounding the birth of her mother who, it has been asserted, was the daughter of the family’s cook. The strain of wartime on the royal family is highlighted in new material contrasting the stance of the Princess’s uncles, the Duke of Windsor and David Bowes Lyon. In contrast with her upbringing, Philip’s early life was turbulent, although their lives shared some interesting and poignant parallels. Lady Butter, a relation of Philip and friend of the Princess, recalls time spent with each of them; and unpublished documents show how intelligence agencies considered the socialist influence of the Mountbattens on Philip and thus on the royal court.
PRINCESS is available in hardback, paperback and ebook from Amazon and from Lyons Press USA (see Orders page) The paperback and ebook can also be bought from Lume Books.
A major influence on the young Princess Elizabeth was her mother’s family, Bowes Lyon. The Princess’s maternal grandparents were the 14th Earl and Countess of Strathmore, a title that went back through centuries of Scottish nobility. Like many aristocratic families, myths and legends abounded, and scandals too. On the link below is an extract from Princess that tells the sad story Jane discovered from court documents and newspapers about a child born into the Bowes Lyon family in the early 20th century and who never knew she was a second cousin to Elizabeth II. https://janedismore.com/books/princess-the-early-life-of-queen-elizabeth-ii/
Jane Dismore 