So far, only a few excerpts from the new book by Princess Diana’s brother, Earl Charles Spencer, have been released. Yet, these passages have already caused a major stir within the British Royal Family. They have brought to light painful memories of Diana’s unhappy marriage and elicited a rare, stern response from Buckingham Palace.
A Buckingham Palace spokesperson stated, “As a matter of principle, we do not usually comment on books. However, His Majesty is aware that fraternal grief can cloud a person’s reasoning, influence their judgment, and color memories in ways others may not perceive.”
CNN did not see Charles Spencer’s book, Swan Song, prior to its publication. However, a spokesperson for the publisher, Penguin Random House, confirmed that the excerpts published by the Daily Mail are accurate.
In the published passages, Spencer makes several explosive claims regarding the marital relationship between Diana and the then-Prince of Wales (Charles), as well as Charles’s reaction following Diana’s death.
Charles was ‘elated’ after Diana’s death
Among the most explosive claims in the published excerpts is Spencer’s recollection of Charles’s reaction following Diana’s death.
Spencer describes the tumultuous night of August 31, 1997.
He recounts calling his former brother-in-law, Charles, after hearing the news of Diana’s horrific car accident in Paris. Spencer claims that during the call, Charles’s voice sounded elated—like someone who had just won the lottery.
‘We will forget her very soon’
Spencer also highlights another telephone conversation in the book. It concerned a dispute over whether Princes William and Harry should walk behind their mother’s coffin at her funeral.
Spencer claims that Charles flew into a rage at the time, before pausing for a moment. Spencer wrote that he had assumed the pause was an attempt to compose himself. But then, from the other end of the line, Charles poured out his pent-up disdain for Diana and his resentment over the fact that the entire world was so grief-stricken and shaken by her death. According to Spencer, Charles then said, “Rest assured, we shall forget her very soon!”
Charles and Diana’s Unhappy Marriage
Spencer also wrote in detail about his sister’s unhappy relationship with the then-Prince of Wales. He claimed that Diana had wanted to back out of the marriage after Charles showed “almost no interest” in her. This incident occurred at the 21st birthday party of Charles’s brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.
Spencer wrote that after suffering growing heartbreak that night, Diana went to their father. She told him she could not go through with marrying a man who clearly did not love her.
“Oh, there’s a bit of fat here!”
A few days after the engagement was announced, Charles grabbed Diana’s waist and said, “Oh, there’s a bit of fat here, isn’t there?”
Spencer claimed that Diana was “deeply hurt” by that remark.
Diana suffered from bulimia. Spencer wrote that she later told him her waist size had dropped from 29 inches to 23.5 inches between the engagement and the wedding.
Wanted to Restore Diana’s ‘HRH’ Title
Spencer claimed that on the day of Diana’s funeral, Queen Elizabeth II had proposed restoring the ‘HRH’ title she had lost.
‘HRH’ stands for ‘His or Her Royal Highness.’ This title is used for specific senior members of the royal family.
Diana had lost this title following her divorce from Charles. Spencer claimed that Diana had been deeply hurt by the removal of the title; she viewed it as a “petty and vindictive” decision.
