The Real Reason Princess Diana's Brother's Girlfriend Sued His Ex-Wife

Princess Diana's love life played out in a rather public manner, with the beloved royal marrying then-Prince Charles in a lavish wedding, before enduring an equally public divorce prior to her untimely death. It appears that troubled romances might just run in the Spencer family, since Diana's brother, Charles Spencer, has had his own share of heartache — including the mess he found himself in, in late 2024. Earl Spencer married first wife Victoria Aitken in 1989, with his nephew, young Prince Harry, serving as one of the child attendants at the wedding. The two divorced in 1997. 

His second stab at wedded bliss was with Caroline Freud, and their union lasted from 2001 until 2007. Then came Karen Gordon, whom Spencer married in 2011. The seemingly happy couple announced in June 2024 that they would soon be divorcing. But their relationship didn't end with a polite, "we wish each other well" statement. In late December 2024, Gordon filed papers with the High Court in England, accusing her estranged husband of having a years-long affair that caused their relationship to fully deteriorate, and for informing her that it was over via text message.

As if that wasn't enough to get tongues wagging and leave Charles pulling out his hair, the whole reason his former wife felt compelled to go legal was in defense of a lawsuit that had been filed against her by Earl Spencer's girlfriend, Cat Jarman. The archaeologist filed her own petition in October 2024, suing Gordon for revealing personal information about Jarman without her consent (Gordon reportedly told Charles that his girlfriend had multiple sclerosis (MS). 

Charles Spencer met his girlfriend Cat Jarman when she was working on his expansive compound (also Charles and Diana's childhood home) to unearth an ancient villa. The two became fast friends, and eventually began a podcast alongside a third contributor, Reverend Richard Cole, entitled "The Rabbit Hole Detectives." While the couple strongly refuted allegations that their romance began long before Charles and his current wife, Karen Gordon, parted ways, she remains unconvinced. Gordon even began corresponding with Jarman's acquaintances and, "In the course of a conversation about whether I had been having an affair with her husband [...] Karen learned that I have MS," as Earl Spencer's girlfriend explained to the Daily Mail. "It was also confirmed to her that this was not something that was widely known. And yet she then went to Charles and said: 'You do know she has MS, don't you?'" 

The archaeologist, who had only been seeing Charles for a couple of months at that stage, had not yet divulged her medical diagnosis. Jarman's lawyers asked Gordon to cease sharing any private or personal details about her, but she did not. In October 2024, Charles' girlfriend sued for damages, an injunction, and a list of everyone she had told. In response to her suit, Gordon filed paperwork about Earl Spencer cheating and ending their marriage by text. But Jarman doesn't buy it, arguing to the Daily Mail, "Karen Spencer is not so much mounting a legal defense to my legitimate action, but has rather stooped to make a hideous and defamatory attack on Charles and me."