Royal biographer Andrew Morton has claimed King Charles made a mistake when he issued a statement in response to Earl Spencer's claims in his newly released book about the late Princess Diana. Speaking on The Telegraph's The Daily T podcast, Morton said the monarch's response was written too hastily and that the King 'got it wrong'.
Statement issued within an hour
Earl Spencer, the brother of the late Princess Diana, recently released a tell-all book about his sister, which included several allegations levelled at the monarch. One such claim stated Charles, back when he was still Prince of Wales, told Spencer that the world would 'forget her soon enough', following Diana's death.
The Earl also said that Charles acted 'giddily excited' when he was told of his former wife's tragic passing in 1997. The claims were made in the serialisation of the book, several days before it was released, with the King issuing an unprecedented statement about the memoir.
Buckingham Palace response
A Buckingham Palace spokesperson said after the controversial excerpt was released: "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 judgment and colour memory in ways others do not recognise, even many years after such a loss."
Now, almost a week after Earl Spencer's book hit the shelves, Morton - who has penned his own biography about the late Princess Diana - said: "With [Earl] Spencer's book, he, within an hour or so, issued a statement.
"I would have thought that sensible courtiers would have said to him, 'Hang fast, sir, because it's only a book - these things will pass'. But I think it's a sign of how angry he was that this statement was written almost contemporaneously, and in a way, it's a statement written for an audience of one, and that's King Charles."
Spencer defends the memoir
During his press tour for the book last week, Earl Spencer appeared on Lorraine, where he insisted that the memoir was not designed to be a 'hit piece' against the King or the Royal Family, but also clarifying that he had 'no regrets' about stories included in the book.
Spencer said: "This book is a celebration of an extraordinary woman from a brother's point of view. And as a brother, I have every right to write about my sister.
"But I would like to explain that I was not setting out to do a hit piece on the King at all. The comments [from Charles] that I've included in the book are totally in context."
The TV host then quizzed Spencer on if he felt he was 'going against the Royal Family' by writing the book, to which the Earl said: "I'm really not. This is about Diana. It's impossible to give the full story of Diana's life without putting in context of certain things that were said.
"This is not a threat at all because I'm not going to do it, but if I wanted to write a hit piece on the Royal Family, I could do that, but that's not my job. My job is to celebrate Diana, and by doing that, some people might come off not as good as they would like to."
He continued: "So I stand by the truth. I knew when I took this book on that it would have a controversial effect, but it doesn't matter because at the end of the day it's for Diana and I would do anything for her and I have no regrets."
