Mr Havers was back on screens last night as he joined an army of celebrities on the BBC hit Michael McIntyre’s The Wheel. The 69-year-old was hoping that, alongside the likes of Greg Rutherford and Reverend Kate Bottley, he could help three contestants win a life changing amount of cash as they answer questions on the gameshow. The BAFTA-nominated actor, who rose to prominence as Lord Andrew Lindsay in the 1981 British film Chariots of Fire, is well known across the UK, particularly for his roles as a well-spoken Englishman.
And with such tradition steeped in his portrayals, it’s hardly surprising that he has previously become close with members of the Royal Family, including Diana.
He opened up on how he “adored” the Princess of Wales, but confirmed he was never romantically linked with the royal, as she was married to Charles.
Speaking on Piers Morgan’s Life Stories four years ago, he claimed that the pair “met up a couple of times” but that the encounters were “very much just tea”.
He continued: “I was very, very good. No I wasn’t in love with her, but I did adore her. Adored is different to in love.
“And also she was married to Prince Charles. He would have been really cross with me. What an incredibly bad thing to do.
“It was random but it was rather charming. I made a very good cup of tea. She’d say that life was difficult…she was keen to have a conversation with me, just saying hi, what was I up to and stuff like that.”
Mr Havers himself was first married in 1974 to Carolyn Cox, nicknamed Caro, but soon began an affair with his friend’s sister Polly Williams – who he would later marry.
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The former Coronation Street star also detailed the sad moment he heard Diana had tragically died in a Paris car crash in 1997.
He added: “I was on an aeroplane to Los Angeles where I was working and I got a taxi at LAX airport and the driver said to me, ‘She didn’t make it’ and I didn’t know what he was talking about.
“It wasn’t until I got to the hotel [I saw] the commotion and I was just utterly shocked like everybody.”
Mr Havers personality saw him become friends with some of the world’s biggest stars, and counts among his godchildren comedian and actor Jack Whitehall.
He is so close to Jack’s father Michael, that Mr Havers was actually in the delivery room when the comic was born.
Speaking in 2018 to the Daily Mirror, the Lothario described Mr Whitehall as “smart as a whippet” but also had some words of advice regarding relationships.
The star concluded: “Jack doesn’t need a girlfriend.
“He’s very young and has just got out of a long-term relationship. He’s a single man again now.”
Michael McIntyre’s The Wheel airs tonight at 8.30pm on BBC One.
