British ballet dancer Wayne Sleep and Princess Diana dancing to 'Uptown Girl' with HRH Princess Diana on stage at the, Royal Albert Hall, London, in December 1985
Wayne Sleep and Princess Diana dancing to ‘Uptown Girl’ 1985J Black, Camera Press

EXCLUSIVE: The memoir of a choreography teacher who secretly taught Princess Diana to dance is to be turned into a 90-minute feature documentary.

Canadian producer-distributor Sphere Media has secured rights to Anne Allan’s ‘Dancing with Diana: A Memoir‘ and will co-produce it with Alan Clements’ Glasgow-based Two Rivers Media. Sphere Abacus, the sales arm of Sphere, will shop the doc internationally. It’s early days for the project so no network or streamer is attached yet.

Scottish-Canadian dancer and London City Ballet mistress Allan was the late Princess Diana’s dance teacher, and co-choreographed her ‘Uptown Girl’ routine at London’s Royal Opera House, which she surprised Prince Charles with in 1985. Allan’s memoir, which recounts the performance, was released last year.

The doc will chronicle the nine years from 1981 during which Allen secretly trained Diana as a dancer. The pair joined for hundreds of one-hour lessons at a private dance studio over the years, and forged a close bond as Diana struggled with her stratospheric fame after marrying into the British royal family.

Diana’s son, Prince Harry, has been in the press this week after his court action against Rupert Murdoch’s News Group Newspapers was interrupted by a series of delays during which the two sides reportedly move close to a settlement. The California-based Prince sued The Sun‘s owner for alleged unlawful information gathering by journalists and their contractors.

The latest feature doc about his mother will explore joy of motherhood, along with her crumbling marriage to Charles and struggle with bulimia. Producers say it will also include never-seen-before archive material, including photos, personal gifts and notes from the Princess. Royal insiders, celerities, Hollywood stars and several of Diana’s closest friends will appear in interviews.

“I am thrilled that Sphere Media and Two Rivers Media have chosen to bring to screen Dancing with Diana,” said Allan. “As a Glaswegian that lives in Canada, this is a very special partnership for me, that I’m so looking forward to seeing realized. During my time with the Princess, I was so fortunate to witness not only Diana’s profound love of dance, but a much more personal side of her. I hope that viewers of the documentary will appreciate this fresh look as well as discover a deeper understanding of just how extraordinary she was.”

Sphere Media President Marlo Miazga said: “It’s a rare thing to find a fresh angle on such an adored and explored public figure, but Anne’s memoir is a treasure trove of new perspectives and intimate insights into one of the most scrutinised women in history. It’s also exciting to be partnering with Two Rivers for the first time on a project that brings together both of our heritages with a story that will surely resonate with audiences around the world.”

Alan Clements, Managing Director and exec producer at Two Rivers added: “This project hits all the right notes for a co-production between our companies. The combination of our track records in producing remarkable stories from diverse perspectives with a distributor that leaves no stone unturned in finding audiences is a powerful partnership for success. Diana’s story is, of course, as enduring as it is poignant. The gems to be found in these memoirs represent a perfect and organic opportunity and we’re very excited to take it.”

Two Rivers is known for programs such as the upcoming BBC doc The Last Musician of Auschwitz and the five-part Channel 4 doc series Travels with Agatha with Sir David Suchet, a co-production with Soho Studios. Both are distributed by Sphere Abacus, which is based in the UK but now owned by Sphere after a multi-million dollar acquisition last year. Two Rivers is also making Special Forces: Most Daring Missions for Paramount+ UK and Ireland, narrated by Venom actor Tom Hardy and another co-pro with Ian Lamarra’s Soho Studios.

Sphere, which has offices across Canada and produces across genres, is known for the likes of adult animated series Red Ketchup, animated kids’ show Riley Rocket, documentaries Storm the Skies 911 and 100 Days to Victory, theatrically-released feature doc Monkey on A Stick: Murder, Madness and the Hare Krishnas, original comedy docuseries Mark McKinney Needs a Hobby and fact-ent series Drag Bruch Saved My Life.

The company is considered one of Canada’s largest indies by volume.