William and Harry speak out over BBC interview saying Diana ‘was failed’
Prince William and Prince Harry have issued scathing statements describing the effect of a 1995 Panorama interview on their mother’s life.
The Duke of Cambridge criticised the BBC for its failings which he says exacerbated her ‘fear, paranoia and isolation’.
He said the interview – which was obtained using faked documents – had hurt ‘countless’ others.
He called for the interview to never be aired again and said it contributed to ‘making my parents’ relationship worse’.
Meanwhile, in a separate statement the Duke of Sussex said: ‘The ripple effect of a culture of exploitation and unethical practices ultimately took her life.’
The journalist was in ‘serious breach’ of the BBC’s producer guidelines when he faked bank statements and showed them to Earl Spencer to gain access to the princess in 1995, a report by Lord Dyson said.
William said he was left with ‘indescribable sadness’ to know the corporation’s shortcomings had ‘contributed significantly’ to Diana, Princess of Wales’ state of mind in the final years of her life.
‘She was failed not just by a rogue reporter, but by leaders at the BBC who looked the other way rather than asking the tough questions,’ the duke said.
He said the BBC’s failings had not only let his mother and family down but the public as well.
The BBC has now written to the royal family to apologise for the circumstances surrounding the interview – in which Diana said: ‘Well, there were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded’, a reference to Camilla Parker Bowles – who Charles later married.
The corporation has returned any awards gained as a result of the interview.
Personal expressions of regret have been sent to the Queen, Prince of Wales, the dukes of Cambridge and Sussex, and Diana’s brother Earl Spencer.
The earl has said he ‘draws a line’ between the Panorama interview with his sister Diana, Princess of Wales and her death two years later in a car accident in Paris, while being pursued by photographers.
William said in his statement: ‘The interview was a major contribution to making my parents’ relationship worse and has since hurt countless others.
‘It brings indescribable sadness to know that the BBC’s failures contributed significantly to her fear, paranoia and isolation that I remember from those final years with her.
‘But what saddens me most, is that if the BBC had properly investigated the complaints and concerns first raised in 1995, my mother would have known that she had been deceived.’
He ended with the words: ‘In an era of fake news, public service broadcasting and a free press have never been more important. These failings, identified by investigative journalists, not only let my mother down, and my family down; they let the public down too.’
Harry praised Diana in his own statement, saying: ‘Our mother was an incredible woman who dedicated her life to service. She was resilient, brave, and unquestionably honest.
‘The ripple effect of a culture of exploitation and unethical practices ultimately took her life.
‘To those who have taken some form of accountability, thank you for owning it. That is the first step towards justice and truth. Yet what deeply concerns me is that practices like these – and even worse – are still widespread today.
‘Then, and now, it’s bigger than one outlet, one network, or one publication.
‘Our mother lost her life because of this, and nothing has changed. By protecting her legacy, we protect everyone, and uphold the dignity with which she lived her life. Let’s remember who she was and what she stood for.’
Bashir had commissioned documents which he claimed showed payments into the bank account of Alan Waller, a former employee of Earl Spencer, Patrick Jephson, Diana’s private secretary, and Richard Aylard, private secretary to the Prince of Wales, Lord Dyson’s report noted.
The documents falsely suggested they were being paid to keep the princess under surveillance.
Lord Dyson’s report said: ‘By showing Earl Spencer the fake Waller and Jephson/Aylard statements and informing him of their contents, Mr Bashir deceived and induced him to arrange a meeting with Princess Diana. By gaining access to Princess Diana in this way, Mr Bashir was able to persuade her to agree to give the interview.’
Bashir has apologised for faking the documents and said it was ‘a stupid thing do to do’, and ‘an action I deeply regret’, but maintained it had ‘no bearing whatsoever on the personal choice by Princess Diana to take part in the interview’.
He added: ‘Evidence handed to the inquiry in her own handwriting (and published alongside the report today) unequivocally confirms this, and other compelling evidence presented to Lord Dyson reinforces it.
‘In fact, despite his other findings, Lord Dyson himself in any event accepts that the princess would probably have agreed to be interviewed without what he describes as my “intervention”.’
He said he will ‘always remain immensely proud of that interview’.
William's statement in full
‘I would like to thank Lord Dyson and his team for the report.
‘It is welcome that the BBC accepts Lord Dyson’s findings in full – which are extremely concerning – that BBC employees:
– lied and used fake documents to obtain the interview with my mother;
– made lurid and false claims about the Royal Family which played on her fears and fuelled paranoia;
– displayed woeful incompetence when investigating complaints and concerns about the programme; and
– were evasive in their reporting to the media and covered up what they knew from their internal investigation.
‘It is my view that the deceitful way the interview was obtained substantially influenced what my mother said. The interview was a major contribution to making my parents’ relationship worse and has since hurt countless others.
‘It brings indescribable sadness to know that the BBC’s failures contributed significantly to her fear, paranoia and isolation that I remember from those final years with her.
‘But what saddens me most, is that if the BBC had properly investigated the complaints and concerns first raised in 1995, my mother would have known that she had been deceived. She was failed not just by a rogue reporter, but by leaders at the BBC who looked the other way rather than asking the tough questions.
‘It is my firm view that this Panorama programme holds no legitimacy and should never be aired again. It effectively established a false narrative which, for over a quarter of a century, has been commercialised by the BBC and others.
‘This settled narrative now needs to be addressed by the BBC and anyone else who has written or intends to write about these events.
‘In an era of fake news, public service broadcasting and a free press have never been more important. These failings, identified by investigative journalists, not only let my mother down, and my family down; they let the public down too.’
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