Earl Spencer's Diana memoir leaves Prince William in 'most difficult' position

Earl Charles Spencer will publish Swan Song: Diana, My Sister on 22 September, a memoir about his sister Princess Diana that makes direct claims about King Charles III in the days around her death.

The book claims the King sounded “giddily elated” on the morning Diana died. It claims he said “Rest assured, we'll forget her soon enough!” ahead of her funeral. It also claims some inside Buckingham Palace were “relieved – indeed pleased” at her death, according to HELLO!.

Spencer writes that he was told of Diana’s death on 31 August 1997. Diana was his sister. She was the mother of Prince William and Prince Harry, which makes Spencer their uncle.

The account is described as the first time Spencer has spoken at length about Diana, according to The Independent. The royal family’s initial response to Diana’s death was criticised at the time as overly insular, according to CNN.

Buckingham Palace is in a war of words with Spencer over the memoir, according to the BBC. The Palace has not been quoted in the verified material as answering the specific wording point by point.

That leaves questions about the two princes. HELLO!’s Royal Editor Emily Nash said on HELLO!’s Right Royal Podcast that Prince William is in the most difficult situation over the book. She said she does not think Spencer is particularly close to William.

Nash also said Prince Harry stayed with Spencer in July while Harry was in the United Kingdom. She said Harry is trying to reconcile with his father, King Charles III.

Prince William and Catherine were in Scotland and focused on duty amid the publicity around the memoir, according to HELLO!. Their eldest son, Prince George, has started at Eton.

For anyone coming fresh to this, the difficulty is personal as well as public. William is both the heir and Diana’s son. He must carry on with engagements while others debate his mother’s memory in print.