Princess Diana's brother slams King Charles' response to his book

Earl Spencer is pushing back against King Charles, accusing him of "gaslighting" following Buckingham Palace's response to claims made in his upcoming memoir, Swan Song: Diana, My Sister.

The controversy stems from an excerpt in which Spencer alleges that Charles told him, during a phone call shortly after Princess Diana's death in 1997, that she would be forgotten "soon enough." 

In response, Buckingham Palace issued a statement suggesting that grief can affect memory over time, without directly denying the specific remark.

Spencer has now criticised that response as "astonishingly provocative," saying it implied he had lied without King Charles having to explicitly deny anything. 

He compared the wording to the palace's earlier "recollections may vary" statement issued after Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey, calling this latest version a weaker imitation that felt out of place given the circumstances.

In his book, Spencer also recalls tension between himself and King Charles over whether Princes William and Harry, then 15 and 12, should walk behind their mother's coffin during her funeral. 

Swan Song: Diana, My Sister is set for release on September 22.