Kate Snell is a British author and filmmaker. She researched the life of Princess Diana[1] and published a book, Diana: Her Last Love[2] [3] (2000), which is the basis for the film, Diana (2013)[4] and British Indian actor Naveen Andrews as Dr. Hasnat Khan.[5] A reissue of Diana: Her Last Love appeared as a tie-in to the film and was published in August 2013 by Andre Deutsch,[6] an imprint of Carlton Books.
Snell's book Deceived (2007), about conman Robert Freegard, who posed as a spy for 10 years, was published by Orion Books. Deceived was written following the 2005 production of the award-winning feature-length documentary, The Spy Who Stole My Life,[7] which was directed by Snell and produced by her production company, Creative Touch Films.[8] Snell is a former reporter for the BBC's Woman’s Hour, a producer of BBC current affairs programme Panorama, and Series Producer for the BBC’s foreign affairs strand Correspondent.[9]
Snell has directed numerous documentaries, including an examination of Shell’s role in the execution of human rights activist Ken Saro-Wiwa; an undercover exposé of the treatment of circus animals, which culminated in the conviction of Mary Chipperfield for cruelty to animals; and a film for BBC2 on Israel at 50. She was the executive producer of Channel 4’s profile of Cherie Blair. During the Clinton administration, Snell gained behind-the-scenes access to the White House, becoming the first television director ever to film the ‘gaggle’ – the morning meeting between the President’s communications director and the White House press corps.