Earl Spencer, Princess Diana’s brother, spoke to BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg on Friday about his upcoming book "Swan Song: Diana, My Sister," scheduled for release next Tuesday. In the interview, he revealed that King Charles had allegedly told him over the phone after Diana's death in 1997 that she would be forgotten soon enough. Spencer claims this was not a shock to Prince William and Prince Harry, who he says have already been briefed about his book’s contents during discussions at Althorp earlier this year. Buckingham Palace has denied these claims, suggesting that grief can distort memory over time.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-21,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Experts suggest that Earl Spencer felt a duty to write his memoir about Diana's life. In the book, he makes explosive claims against King Charles, alleging that shortly after Princess Diana’s death in 1997, then-Prince Charles said "we’ll forget her soon enough." This prompted Buckingham Palace to issue a statement saying His Majesty is mindful that fraternal grief can cloud judgment and reason.
Spencer accused the king of gaslighting him when the palace responded by questioning his recollections. He called the palace's defense a "rather poor imitation" of how Queen Elizabeth II handled similar allegations from Prince Harry in their Oprah interview.
The book also includes details about an alleged row over Diana’s funeral arrangements where King Charles reportedly went ballistic, criticizing Spencer's family for not fulfilling their duties adequately enough. Buckingham Palace did not comment on the specifics of these claims but suggested that grief could affect memory accuracy over time.
Earl Spencer told BBC he wanted to put down truths before it was too late due to his awareness of mortality. He added that there are other facts about King Charles he chose not to include in the book, deeming them irrelevant.
Written for “Diana Controversies Royal Family” on 2026-10-05,
grounded in this article and the 92 other(s) covering the same event.
Princess Diana’s brother Earl Spencer insinuated that he’d already spoken to his nephews, Prince William and Prince Harry, about the bombshell claims he makes about her death in his upcoming book.
uncertain
he → insinuate → book
Spencer told the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg in his interview Friday, “I don’t like to talk about what I’ve been speaking about to William and Harry, but this will not be a surprise to them.”
“I will tell you that these words will not be a surprise to them,” he insisted.
asserted
he → tell → them
“It didn’t come as a shock,” a source in the know told us.
asserted
source → come → us
We’re told the two actually discussed the book during Harry’s visit to the Spencer ancestral estate, Althorp, back in July when he brought his wife, Meghan Markle, and their kids — Princess Lilibet, 5, and Prince Archie, 7 — to see his mother’s burial site.
asserted
he → tell → site
In Spencer’s highly anticipated new book, he alleges King Charles III told him that Diana would be forgotten “soon enough” in a horrific phone call following her death in 1997.
“He 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 claimed, per an excerpt obtained by the Daily Mail.
asserted
Spencer → anticipate → Mail
“’Rest assured,’” he hissed, ‘we’ll forget her soon enough!’”
asserted
we → rest → her
Spencer said he was in disbelief at the time and hung up the phone.
asserted
he → say → phone
He also alleged that Charles “sounded giddily elated — like a lottery winner” after his ex-wife died.
“Looking back now, I suspect the prince’s first reaction must have been to think more of how this event might free him to marry the woman he loved, rather than appreciating the loss of one he did not,” Spencer mused, referring to now-Queen Camilla, whom Charles wed in 2005.
uncertain
Charles → allege → 2005
But 77-year-old Charles — who had a famously tumultuous marriage to Diana from 1981 until they split in 1992, and finalized their divorce four years later — has hit back at Spencer’s claims.
uncertain
they → have → claims
A rep for Buckingham Palace told Page Six, “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.”
asserted
others → tell → loss
Spencer, 62, doubled down on his claims in his interview with Kuenssberg, insisting he was “telling the truth.”
uncertain
he → double → truth
“I can tell you here and now, those are exactly the words he said,” he stressed.
asserted
he → tell → you
“I was hyper alert to what he was saying and those are precisely the words that he said and I promise that to you now.
asserted
I → say → you
Genuinely, that is what he said.
asserted
he → say → what
I don’t hear him saying he didn’t say that.”
asserted
he → hear → that
Spencer also told the BBC that he sees parallels between how his late sister was treated and with how Harry, 42, and Markle, 45, are treated by the public.
asserted
Harry → tell → public
“If you look at an article in a tabloid about Diana or the couple that you’re mentioning, Harry and Meghan, they can be really, really unpleasant,” Spencer said.
asserted
Spencer → look → that
“I think it would be really beholden on people to learn from Diana’s example,” he continued, referencing her tragic death following a car crash in Paris at age 36.
asserted
he → think → age
Conversation
Your voice matters.
asserted
voice → matter → ?
Discussions are moderated for civility.
asserted
Discussions → moderate → civility
The Aporia
