Charles Spencer, 60, Breaks Silence on Romance with Woman 18 Years His Junior amid Divorce Drama: 'I Don't Have to Pretend'

Mar. 15, 2025

Charles Spencer and Dr. Cat Jarman in June 2023.Photo:Charles Spencer/Instagram

Charles Spencer/Instagram

Charles Spenceris opening up about his growing romance with Dr. Cat Jarman, his podcast co-host, amid his contentious divorce from this third wife,Karen Spencer.

In a new interview withThe Mail on Sunday,published on Nov. 24, the 9th Earl Spencer, 60, and Jarman, a 42-year-old Norwegian archeologist, spoke about their love story for the first time together.

“I’m too old for hearts and flowers stuff, but the best way to describe it is that with Cat, I can be myself,” said Charles, who is the younger brother ofPrincess Diana. “She knows who I am. Who I really am. I don’t have to pretend to be something I am not. And she brings out the best in me.”

When asked if this was a new dynamic for him in a relationship, he replied, “Yes.”

Charles Spencer and Dr. Cat Jarman at Althorp in August 2021.Charles Spencer/Instagram

The 9th Earl Spencer, who is an author and historian, met Jarman in 2021 after she came toAlthorp House, the Spencer family’s ancestral home in Northamptonshire, England, for archeological investigation. They later launched the historicalThe Rabbit Hole Detectivespodcast (which has inspired a book of the same name) with Rev. Richard Coles in 2023.

“The thing is, I am 18 years older than Cat and so there wasn’t even the possibility . . . I’ve never been with a much younger person. I wasn’t even thinking romance. I was at the tail end of a marriage. It just wasn’t a possibility,” Charles told the outlet as he and Cat were at a literary festival in Iceland to promote their new book. “I’ve never tried to do a hard sell on Cat. She’s very canny, very emotionally mature. With her I don’t pretend to be anything I am not. She knows exactly who I am – and who I am not.”

“It really is nice to be with someone who wants to do stuff,” he continued. “Take today. We could have come to this festival and just stayed in the hotel, but we were up this morning going to see a lagoon. It really is nice to find someone who is dynamic and interested.”

In June, Charles and his wife, Karen, announced that theywere divorcingafter nearly 13 years of marriage. Hereportedly retainedthe same attorney thatKing Charlesdid when he and Princess Diana officially divorced in 1996.The Mail on Sundaydescribed the Earl Spencer as “not-yet-divorced” in the new interview.

Cat Jarman at the Jaipur Literature Festival in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India on March 10, 2022.Vishal Bhatnagar/NurPhoto via Getty

Vishal Bhatnagar/NurPhoto via Getty

“A lot of my close friends have said how happy they are that I am with someone like Cat because it shows enormous progress from where I was before,” Charles said, adding, “Look, it’s good to be with someone who is just so . . . nice.”

“I don’t want to denigrate anyone, but Cat is just completely different to anyone I’ve ever been with before,” he said.

When asked about the prospect of marriage, Charles said, “It’s a bit early for that.”

Charles announced his divorce from Karen toThe Mail on Sundayin June, and the outlet reported then that he was “becoming close to” Jarman. The couple gave their most open interview yet toThe Mail on Sundayin a piece full of revealing details, from banter about what to call one another (Charles and Jarman agreeing that traditional boyfriend and girlfriend titles sounded too youthful), the timeline on when sparks started to fly (March) and where they’re at now (“No we aren’t living together,” Charles said).

During this time, Charles was also writing his memoir,A Very Private School. He spent five years writing the book, which recounted his brutal experience at boarding school as a young boy and the abuse endured there, and was published in March.

The Earl Spencer told PEOPLE then that Karen was"supportive"of him writing the memoir and hoped it would be healing. He told theMailthat he was showing Cat the drafts, too.

Charles Spencer at the U.K. premiere of “Dancing at the Vatican” on Feb. 5, 2020 in London.David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty

David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty

The outlet reported that Jarman saw how affecting the process was for him, “and I came to understand the man, and what had made him the way he is.”

“I think Cat being Scandinavian is quite lovely for me, coming to me cold, as it were, just accepting me for the person. I’ve been to visit her parents in Norway, and they really don’t have a class system there,” he said. “It seems a really happy place and everyone just gets on with it.”

Reflecting, the Earl Spencer described the current moment as a “more honest phase of life.” A father to seven, the author and historian shares four children with his first wife, Victoria Lockwood, and two children with his second wife, Caroline Freud.

Charles Spencer and Karen Spencer at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle on May 19, 2018.Chris Jackson/Getty

Chris Jackson/Getty

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Charles and Karen married at Althorp in June 2011, and share 12-year-old daughter Charlotte Diana, whose middle name honors her late aunt. Karen was also previously married, and shares two daughters from her first marriage to Hollywood producer Mark Gordon.

On Nov. 23, the day before her estranged husband gave the new interview, Karen, a Canadian social entrepreneur and founder ofWhole Child International, spoke about her next chapter in a post on Instagram.

“It hasn’t been easy finding a temporary rental that can accommodate seven horses, two sheep, four cats, and a dog - but with the help of some wonderful friends, we’ve finally found one. It’s been a challenging time, but also one filled with so much generosity and kindness. No exact move-in date yet, but we’re getting close,” she wrote, posting photos and a video with her two sheep, Lucky and Minty.

“Now, I’m excited to embark on the next chapter! Lucky and Minty, who featured in this week’s newsletter, moved to the new house earlier this week, ahead of the rest of us. They’ve settled in quickly and seem quite happy in their new space!” she wrote, linking to her eponymous newsletter where fans can follow for more updates.

source: people.com