He only gets a cameo in The Crown, but his real-life role in the royal family made a thousand headlines… so do you know who this dashing former cavalry officer is?

He was the handsome army officer who captured Princess Diana’s heart – before recently working as a £4,000 gardener at a flat where he lived with his mother.

But in the days after the final series of The Crown was released, the man nicknamed ‘The Cad’ was spotted flying home from Ireland, a sign that his own circumstances may have improved.

James Hewitt, 65, was seen with a group of friends including a Diana-esque Italian countess and a film producer.

The group, who had been on a private shoot in the west of Ireland, were heard discussing the Netflix show, its historical accuracy and its portrayal of the royal family over pints of Beamish Irish stout in the bar at Shannon Airport .

At one point the retired major, who only appears briefly in The Crown when he is dumped by Diana, “laughed politely and replied that he was sure [the show] was not entirely correct,” said a witness.

With him in Ireland was Countess Alessandra de Michelis di Slonghello, a glamorous Italian aristocrat who ran fashion, art and high-end design companies in Rome, Paris, New York and London.

Hewitt was played by Daniel Donskoy in season four of The Crown and his companions apparently discussed its merits over drinks before heading to Heathrow on Aer Lingus on Sunday.

A fellow drinker told MailOnline: ‘The group arrived at Shannon Airport in good spirits. They enjoyed drinks at the bar on departure, where they were overheard discussing films and new television releases – including The Crown.

A spokesman for Mr Hewitt declined to comment, saying the shoot and circle time with him was a private matter.

Hewitt’s appearance in The Crown was short-lived, although there was a fictional scene where his affair with Diana was discussed by Charles and the Queen.

The then Prince of Wales tells his mother he wants to start divorce proceedings after learning that Diana has resumed her affair with Hewitt.

He tells the Queen, “She has resumed her affair with Major Hewitt in flagrant disregard of our agreement made at our meeting with you. A meeting in which it is now clear that she has brazenly lied to your face.

“It leaves me no choice but to start the process of formal separation.”

He exclaims, “She makes me shamelessly unhappy and there is someone else who would make me completely happy.”

Hewitt also pops up in conversation when Diana tells her therapist that she has ended their relationship and that he is no longer welcome at Kensington Palace, telling her staff to send him away.

Hewitt has ties to Ireland. He was born in Londonderry while his naval father was stationed there with the Royal Marines before moving to Kent and Sandhurst.

The former cavalry officer became one of the most famous men in the world after his affair with William and Harry’s mother came to light.

There were even false rumors that he was Harry’s father, but it was later confirmed that he only met Diana after the Duke of Sussex was born.

Princess Diana met him when he was hired in late 1986 to teach her how to ride horses in an attempt to overcome her lifelong fear of horses.

Their relationship became intimate the following year. By then, her marriage was over in all but name: Prince Charles had returned to his former lover, Camilla Parker Bowles. He later claimed he only did this when his marriage had become ‘irretrievably broken’.

The couple remained together until 1992. By then, Hewitt was mentioned as an important figure in Diana’s life and the letters she sent him were said to have been locked away in his safe. In 2003, Hewitt attempted to sell his 64 personal letters from Diana for £10 million.

The couple was forced apart when he was deployed to Iraq in the 1991 Gulf War and separated after their affair was made public.

Hewitt had spent 17 years in the Household Cavalry and was a tank commander in the first Gulf War.

But when it emerged that he had had a long correspondence with the Princess of Wales during the Gulf War, he was dismissed from the Life Guards in 1994.

Hewitt subsequently revealed details of their affair in Princess In Love, a book he co-authored and published in 1994.

Diana gave her Panorama interview months later.

In an interview with an Australian news network in March 2017, Hewitt recalled the moment he fell in love with the princess.

“She had an aurora of something special around her,” he said. He also admitted that he wanted to “drive her away” from the spotlight.

“It’s a gradual period and then, you know, suddenly you can’t get enough of each other or see each other as much as you want,” he said.

He revealed that the couple used to spend quality time together, enjoying walks along the beach or a mall and cooking dinners.

‘Well, I cooked and she did the dishes. Just eat and relax and laugh,” he added.