Buckingham Palace has issued an uncharacteristic rebuke in response to allegations leveled by Earl Charles Spencer against King Charles. The accusations appear in Spencer’s forthcoming memoir, “Swan Song: Diana, My Sister,” which is scheduled for publication on September 22.
In a firm statement provided to the BBC, a spokesperson for the Palace addressed the claims directly. “While we do not comment on books as a matter of principle, His Majesty is mindful that the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and colour memory in ways others do not recognise, even many years after such a loss,” the statement read.
The controversy stems from excerpts serialized by the Daily Mail, in which Spencer alleges that days before the funeral of Princess Diana in 1997, the then-Prince of Wales hissed a remark to him: “Rest assured, we’ll forget her soon enough!” The book details further friction, claiming that when Spencer opposed the participation of a 15-year-old Prince William and 12-year-old Prince Harry in the funeral procession, the King became enraged.
Spencer writes that the King compared the situation to his own participation in the 1979 funeral procession for Lord Mountbatten. When the Earl noted the significant age difference—as Charles was 30 at the time—he claims the future monarch “went nuts.” Spencer alleges that Charles subsequently unleashed “pent-up contempt for Diana” and expressed horror at the level of global sympathy following her death, an exchange that concluded with Spencer hanging up the phone after remarking that he could not believe what had been said.
The motivation behind the book, according to a Penguin Press release from August 20, is to “tell the truth about Diana from her brother’s perspective” as the 30th anniversary of her death approaches in August 2027. Spencer expressed a desire to document his own memories to avoid the discomfort of reading accounts he characterizes as based on “untruths that have become accepted over time,” aiming to present an openly positive narrative on behalf of his sister.
Princess Diana, 36, died following a vehicle crash in the Pont de l’Alma tunnel in Paris during the early hours of August 31, 1997. The collision also claimed the lives of her boyfriend, Dodi Al-Fayed, and their driver, Henri Paul, who was later found to have been intoxicated. The Princess succumbed to her injuries at a hospital several hours after the accident. The report also notes that the excerpt was published by the Daily Mail on Sept. The report also notes that 16, with additional passages set to be serialized in the newspaper in the coming days. The report also notes that reached out to the Palace for comment. The report also notes that noting he had walked in the procession for his great-uncle Lord Mountbatten in 1979, he alleges that minutes later Charles called to discuss the matter. The report also notes that charles, whose divorce with Diana was finalized in 1996, “unleashed down the phone what I have always taken to be his pent-up contempt for Diana, and his horror that the world was so bowled over by her death,” Spencer wrote. The report also notes that spencer allegedly responded, “I can’t believe you just said that,” and hung up.