ON Sept. 5, 1997, five days after Princess Diana's shocking death at age 36 in a Paris car crash, Queen Elizabeth II gave a rare televised speech and honored the late Princess of Wales. “She was an exceptional and gifted human being," said Her Majesty, who'd been widely criticized for remaining silent in the immediate aftermath of the tragedy. “I admired and respected her for her energy and her commitment to others." It was a surprising sentiment coming from the queen - for years, it was widely reported there was no love lost between her and her former daughter-in-law.

Now, as her health continues to decline, a source tells Star exclusively that the queen, 95, is full of regret over how she treated Diana when she was alive, and is set to reveal all in a blockbuster BBC interview. “The queen has never talked about her relationship with Diana, but Her Majesty has written about it in her diaries apparently,” says the source. "Recently a member of the queen's inner circle gained access to her diaries, where she expresses 'extreme remorse' over blacklisting Diana from the family. The queen writes that if she could turn back time, she would have done things very differently."

TEARS AND BETRAYAL