It is unlike King Charles to respond to criticism. Yet, the British monarch shared a statement after Princess Diana’s brother, Charles Spencer has claimed to unveil “untruths” in his upcoming memoir.
As many royal watchers would have discovered in August, Charles Spencer announced he was publishing a memoir, Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, the following month. He was inspired to write the memoir when he was flooded with interview requests ahead of the 30th anniversary of Diana’s passing.
“This has convinced me to write down my own thoughts and memories, once and for all, rather than having the discomfort of again reading the opinions of others, many of which are based on untruths that have become accepted over time,” he said.
A month later, a Buckingham Palace spokesperson said: “While we do not comment on books as a matter of principle, His Majesty is mindful that the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgement and colour memory in ways others do not recognise, even many years after such a loss.”
So, we wonder, what is the relationship between King Charles and his former brother-in-law, Charles Spencer?
Well, if extracts from Swan Song are to be believed, their relationship was rather tense. But whether it was always like this, or if it was a build-up of negative emotions, is unknown. At least it is for now…
There is some time until the book is officially released. However, four copies of the Dutch version were reportedly stolen from a delivery truck, as per the Daily Mail, which is now releasing extracts of the novel.
In one extract, Charles Spencer has claimed the King said, “Rest assured, we’ll forget her soon enough” shortly after Princess Diana’s death on August 31, 1997. It was this comment that prompted the response from Buckingham Palace.
Five years before this, King Charles was accused of having an affair with the now Queen Camilla following the explosive biography, Diana: Her True Story, by Andrew Morton. A few months later, Prime Minister John Major announced Diana and Charles’ separation. The palace insisted no third party was involved.
The divorce was finalised in August 1996.
If Charles Spencer has accurately recalled King Charles’ comment, it suggests their relationship — and the King’s relationship with Diana — was incredibly strained. Possibly heightened by the cheating scandal which deeply shook the British royal family.
Royal watchers will undoubtedly learn more about King Charles and Charles Spencer’s dynamic upon the memoir’s release. Daily Mail claims Swan Song “includes a string of further extraordinary claims about Diana’s failed marriage to King Charles.”
One relationship we weren’t prepared to learn more about was Earl Spencer’s dynamic with King Charles’ sister, Princess Anne.
In the memoir, the Earl describes the days leading up to Charles and Diana’s wedding, particularly a royal dinner held at Buckingham Palace. Charles Spencer, 17 at the time, was sitting next to Princess Anne, when he claimed to ask, “And how did your daughter’s christening go today, Ma’am?”
“I expected her to run away with the happy topic of her baby Zara’s baptism,” Charles wrote. “But instead, she stopped, looked at me witheringly, and asked, ‘Tell me, how’s a christening supposed to go?’”
Feeling awkward from the engagement, Charles Spencer said it made him “feel small.”
Prior to the memoirs release, leaked pages revealed that Earl Spencer alleged the then-Prince of Wales subjected him to a “stream of anger” after he insisted Diana would not want her teenage children, Prince William and Prince Harry, to walk behind her coffin during the funeral procession. They were only 15 and 12 years old at the time.
This, however, isn’t necessarily new information. In 2017, he shared his fears with People that such an event would ‘traumatise’ Harry. He also previously told BBC Radio 4 that it was “the most horrifying half an hour of my life.”
The devastating images of the young princes, heads dipped down and grieving their mother, would be remembered forever.
Prince Harry has reflected on this moment, and the “hell” his uncle raised in his 2023 memoir, Spare. He wrote, “mummy’s brother, Uncle Charles, raised hell. ‘You can’t make these boys walk behind their mother’s coffin! It’s barbaric.’”
But in the 2017 BBC documentary, Diana, 7 Days, the brothers said it was a “group decision.” William added, “It wasn’t an easy decision, and it was a collective family decision to do that.” However, at this time, Prince Harry was still a senior working royal, unlike when he published Spare.
“Genuinely, I don’t have an opinion on whether that was right or wrong. I am glad I was part of it. Looking back on it now, I am very glad I was part of it,” Harry added in Diana, 7 Days.
Swan Song: Diana, My Sister released on September 23, 2026, in Australia.
