Earl Spencer, or Charles Edward Maurice Spencer, the younger brother of Princess Diana, has submitted a dossier to newly-appointed BBC director-general Tim Davie. He apparently took down notes of his meetings with journalist Martin Bashir and his famous sister before she agreed to do the explosive Panorama interview that shocked the world.
According to Spectator, Earl Spencer's evidence indicated a discrepancy between what Bashir discussed with the princess to the actual interview.Princess Diana admitted to Bashir on television in 1995 that her husband, Prince Charles, the heir to Queen Elizabeth's throne, was having an affair with Camilla Parker-Bowles.
The said interview was seen as the impetus for the Queen to order her son to start with the divorce proceedings. Prior to this, Princess Diana and Prince Charles were living in separate houses for three years though they still carried on with their royal duties.
Earl Spencer apparently took note of how Bashir exploited her sister's vulnerability. The matters behind the Panorama interview have been brought to light again following the airing of a new documentary Diana: The Truth About the Interview, which alleged that Bashir was able to convince Princess Diana to talk under false pretext.
Bashir allegedly showed Earl Spencer fake bank statements when he tried to arrange the interview. It suggested that employees working for the Spencers were selling information to the press amid rumors that Prince Charles and Princess Diana were on the verge of divorcing. He also made claims to the earl about the MI5 and key figures around the royal family when Princess Diana was increasingly becoming suspicious that she was being watched and monitored.
Concerned, Princess Diana's brother then set up the meeting at a friend's house with Bashir but then noted down that his sister must be cautious. The friend revealed that Earl Spencer felt something odd and awful about the journalist. Princess Diana's friends also tried to persuade her not to proceed with talking to Bashir.
According to The Sunday Times, Princess Diana wanted to do the interview to give the public her own account after Prince Charles had his interview with Jonathan Dimbleby a year before. But the chairman of BBC at that time did not know that Bashir filmed had filmed with Diana.
Reports cited that Bashir cannot explain his side because he's not well after suffering from coronavirus-related complications. BBC also released a statement to The Sunday Times saying that this matter was investigated right after the interview came out and cleared Bashir.
