Charles Spencer versus Charles Rex: Disputed Recollections and an Attempt to Reshape Royal History
‘Swan Song: Diana, my sister’ appeared in bookshops on 22 September 2026, at the recommended retail price of £28, although some stores were soon offering the book at ‘half-price.’ The eagerly-awaited book by Charles Spencer began with a dedication: “For all those who have lost a sibling”, and promised to “set about building out the true framework of Diana’s life, for a fuller appreciation of her”, in the run-up to the thirtieth anniversary of Diana’s death. Excerpts had already been exclusively published on 16 September in the Daily Mail, which is also serialising the book. It was alleged that the-then Prince Charles had sounded “giddily elated” and said “we’ll forget her soon enough”, shortly after Diana’s death. Charles Spencer detailed his opposition to the decision whereby Prince William, 15, and Prince Harry, 12, were made to walk behind their mother’s cortège during Diana’s funeral procession, his rejection of the Queen’s offer to posthumously restore Diana’s title of “Her Royal Highness”, and referred to Diana’s contemplation of suicide.
The provocative nature and disputed content of these excerpts led to an unprecedented retaliation by Buckingham Palace the very same day, when a spokesperson made an exception and issued a statement to the effect that: “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.” Charles Spencer responded to the Palace’s statement by speaking exclusively to The Mail on Sunday, accusing King Charles III, his former brother-in-law, of “gaslighting” him.
Much is already well-known about Diana, who married for love but ended up in a loveless marriage, became commoditised by the media and was hounded by the paparazzi, but came to embrace a variety of good causes, and was tragically killed in a car accident in Paris on 31 August 1997, at the far-too-early age of 36.
It is worth spending some time looking instead at the life of the author, and his recollections of shared experiences with his sister, who was just three years older than him, in an attempt to understand his motives for writing this book. Charles Edward Maurice Spencer, who inherited the title of 9th Earl Spencer in 1992, was born on 24 May 1964, the youngest child and only son of Edward John “Johnnie” Spencer, Viscount Althorp (later 8th Earl Spencer), and Frances Ruth Roche, the daughter of Maurice Roche, 4th Baron Fermoy, a half-American Conservative politician. The aristocratic Spencer family can trace its noble roots back to Sir Robert Spencer, who was created first Baron Spencer in 1603. The family has long-standing links with royalty and shares kinship with the Spencer-Churchill family, of which the Duke of Marlborough and Sir Winston Churchill were notable members.
Charles Spencer spent his early childhood years at Park House, a property on the royal Sandringham estate in North Norfolk which was rented from the Crown by the Spencer family. He grew up with Diana in “a household divided by divorce, and darkly punctuated by the death of a sibling.” Their parents were unhappily married, separated in 1967, and divorced two years later. Charles and Diana were brought up by their father, who had been awarded sole custody, while their free-spirited mother relocated to Australia.
Charles Spencer was educated at Silfield School (King’s Lynn, Norfolk); Maidwell Hall (Maidwell, Northamptonshire)-the subject of Charles’ memoir ‘A Very Private School’; Eton College; and Magdalen College, Oxford (MA in Modern History). He was a correspondent with NBC News in the US from 1986 to 1995, wrote eight narrative history books and a volume of memoirs, married four times, found time for “a colourful love life”, and became involved with the restoration and upkeep of the Spencer family’s 13-000-acre estate at Althorp in Northamptonshire, which has been in the family’s possession since 1508. Charles came to wider public notice after his moving, and hard-hitting, eulogy at Princess Diana’s funeral at Westminster Abbey on 6 September 1997.
Some inaccuracies in Charles Spencer’s book have unfortunately escaped the scrutiny of a qualified historian, ie himself, and of fact-checkers at his publisher. These slip-ups will inevitably lead readers to question the credibility of the rest of the book. Charles Spencer pre-emptively apologised on 22 September to former tabloid newspaper editor Piers Morgan for claiming that Morgan, at the time a showbiz columnist at The Sun, was responsible for the publication in the Sunday Mirror, on 7 November 1993, of intrusive photos of Diana in a leotard at a Chelsea Harbour gym. Morgan also disputes Spencer’s account of a phone call disinviting him from Diana’s funeral service, citing his diary entry for 4 September 1997 in Morgan’s 2005 bestseller ‘The Insider: The Private Diaries of a Scandalous Decade.’ Although Morgan has accepted Spencer’s apology, he expects the book to be withdrawn from circulation and pulped to avoid the perpetuation what he considers to be “demonstrable lies.”
Despite Charles Spencer’s contentions to the contrary, there appears to be much cynicism over the timing and the real purpose of his latest book. Accusations of score-settling with the Royal Family, unduly profiting from his sister’s tragic death, and the like will continue to circulate for some time to come. Only Charles Spencer himself knows the real reasons behind the somewhat belated publication of ‘Swan Song’ in 2026. It has to be said, however, that the Royal Family, despite its declining popularity, is able to command the attention of a large audience, particularly within the Anglosphere, and will continue to do so for years to come.
Ashis Banerjee