Buckingham Palace Challenges Earl Spencer Over Allegations in New Diana Memoir

Buckingham Palace is currently engaged in a public dispute with Earl Spencer, the brother of the late Princess Diana, concerning claims in his upcoming memoir, 'Swan Song: Diana, My Sister'. According to excerpts published in the Daily Mail and reported by the BBC, Earl Spencer alleges that shortly after Princess Diana’s death in 1997, the then-Prince of Wales told him, "we'll forget her soon enough."

In the book, Earl Spencer writes that this comment was made during a telephone conversation in which the then-Prince of Wales expressed anger after Spencer argued that Princes William and Harry, then aged 12 and 15, should not have to walk in their mother’s funeral procession. The book alleges that the King expressed horror that the world was "bowled over" by her death before telling Spencer, "rest assured, we'll forget her soon enough."

The Palace has issued an unusually strong response, stating: "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 Palace rejected the claim, characterizing it as "entirely out of character" for the King. Julian Payne, the monarch’s former communications secretary, told the BBC that the language attributed to the King was "just not language that I recognise."

This dispute coincides with a period of multiple royal events. King Charles recently hosted AI industry leaders at Dumfries House, warning of the "existential dangers" of the technology. Simultaneously, the Prince and Princess of Wales visited the Isle of Bute in Scotland, and Prince Harry is expected to attend the inaugural Invictus awards ceremony in the UK. Copies of Earl Spencer's book were also reported stolen from a lorry in the Netherlands.