LONDON (Realist English). Charles Spencer, brother of the late Princess Diana, has published a memoir, “Swan Song: Diana, My Sister”, which has triggered one of the sharpest public conflicts with Buckingham Palace in recent years. The book, published by Penguin and translated into 12 languages, has already provoked a sharp response uncharacteristic of the royal family.
What Spencer Claims
In excerpts published by the Daily Mail, Spencer claims that in a telephone conversation after Diana’s death in 1997, the then-Prince Charles — now King Charles III — told him: “Be assured, we will forget her quite soon.”
According to the book, the conversation took place amid a dispute over whether Diana’s sons, William and Harry (then 15 and 12), should walk behind their mother’s coffin in the funeral procession. Spencer claims Charles “exploded” and unleashed “a torrent of anger” on him, after which he uttered a phrase Spencer perceived as “hidden contempt” for Diana and “horror that the whole world was so stunned by her death.”
Spencer also claims that Charles looked “like a lottery winner” in the days after Diana’s death. He told the BBC: “I can tell you here and now: those are precisely the words he said. I was hyper-attentive to what he was saying. I promise you this.”
Reaction of Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace, which usually does not comment on books about the royal family, issued an unusually harsh statement. A representative of the King said: “While we fundamentally do not comment on books, His Majesty appreciates that the pain of a brother’s loss can cloud the mind, affect judgement, and distort memories in ways those around do not notice, even many years after such a loss.”
As the BBC’s royal correspondent notes, this wording resembles Queen Elizabeth II’s response to Prince Harry and Meghan’s allegations in 2021, when she said that “recollections may vary.”
Former Charles press secretary Julian Payne called the palace’s statement “very unusual” and said he “completely fails to recognise” his former boss in those words.
Spencer’s Response
Spencer did not hold back. In an interview with the Mail on Sunday, he stated that the palace “essentially tried to say I lied, without giving the King the opportunity to refute my words,” calling it “strikingly provocative and low.”
He also said that “you don’t wake up every day to find that the King has deceived you.”
Reaction of Prince William
Sources report that Prince William is “beside himself with fury” over the publication of his uncle’s memoir. “For him, this is not ancient royal history or material for another book — it is his mother, his father, and the most traumatic period of his childhood,” a source told the Daily Star. William has spent years seeking to ensure his mother’s memory is “honoured with dignity,” rather than turned into a scandal.
History of Relations with the Royal Family
Charles Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer, was born into an aristocratic family closely connected to the royal house: the late Queen Elizabeth II was his godmother. He was 17 when his 20-year-old sister married Prince Charles in 1981.
At Diana’s funeral in 1997, Spencer delivered a speech heard by an estimated 2 billion people worldwide. He then promised that the “blood family” would protect her sons — words perceived by the royal family as criticism.
After Diana’s death, Spencer inherited the family estate of Althorp, where Diana is buried on an island. His literary career helped pay for the restoration of the estate.
