Bryan Adams reveals how he tried to ‘save’ his good friend Princess Diana and says meeting her was ‘truly one of the greatest things that ever happened to him’

Bryan Adams has a range of advocacy efforts, according to him the timeswhich includes eco-activism (plastic bottles are banned on his tours) and what the outlet describes as helping “women in trouble,” which “seems to be his specialty.”

The outlet names Amy Winehouse and Sinéad O’Connor among these women.

Most infamously, Adams was close to Princess Diana before her death in 1997.

It adds that some reports accuse the rock star and the royal of having an affair, with his ex-girlfriend Cecilie Thomsen saying this has ruined their relationship.

She reportedly said in 2003 that they had “a stormy relationship” and that “Bryan’s affair with Diana didn’t make things any easier.”

When the Times asked him if he was trying to help Diana, Princess of Wales, he said, “uh-oh,” before “becoming very quiet,” eventually replying, “maybe a little.”

He speaks fondly of the intellectual bond the couple shared, revealing that they shared ‘a lot of really, really good conversations,” adding that it’s “strange and surreal to think about.”

He revealed: ‘I really liked Diana, she was an amazing woman and a huge inspiration. Meeting her was truly one of the most beautiful things that ever happened to me.’

Before they met, the princess was aware of the royal family, thanks to a song he wrote about her with Jim Vallance.

Titled Diana, the song expressed the artist’s displeasure with the union, although as far as the public knew at the time, the relationship was fine.

The text read: ‘The day he married you, I almost went crazy.

“What do you want with a man like that?…I’ll bring you love if you bring your limousine.”

As the B-side to his 1985 US No. 1, Heaven, when Bryan met the young royal family on a plane, the subject of the song was of course the same.

Bryan Adams poses before the opening of his exhibition ‘Exposed’ at Camera Works in December 2018

He said he used her name in a song, to which she replied: ‘Yes, I know, very funny. Actually, I’d like to hear it again.’

Bryan sent her a copy to Kensington Palace, which in turn earned him an invitation, which turned into a friendship.

He explained that they had a cup of tea and a conversation, and that they were “friendlier.” [they] got even more [he] learned what was really going on – and they became what he describes as “good friends.”

When asked by the Times if it was “extraordinary how his song seemed to predict her misfortune,” he replied that Diana’s lyrics were “just boyish humor.”

He added that they were inspired by Michael Fagan (the man who broke into the Queen’s home in 1982 before sitting on her bed and smoking a cigarette).

Prince Harry (pictured, left) along with Bryan Adams (left) speak to soldiers during a private viewing of a photo exhibition by Bryan of young wounded soldiers and women from the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan

Although many enjoyed the song by the princess, Bryan retired it after Diana’s death, out of respect for her and Princes William and Harry.

Further royal connections are mentioned by the Times.

There was one occasion when he was given 15 minutes access to the Queen at Buckingham Palace.

Photography is Bryan Adam’s second career and he was engaged to create an official portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, which was used on a Canadian postage stamp.

And in 2014, Prince Harry attended an exhibition of Bryan’s photo of wounded veterans from the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan – the royal was a captain in the British Army at the time.