King Charles takes a leaf out of Queen Elizabeth's crisis management handbook with careful response to explosive Diana claim
His ex-brother-in-law Earl Spencer alleges in his new book that the monarch told him they'd 'forget' Diana 'soon enough'
It's rare that we see the Royal Family publicly responding to the revelations made in books about them but the King made a rare exception when an extract from Earl Spencer's upcoming Swan Song biography was published in the Daily Mail. In it, Princess Diana's brother describes a supposed phone call with King Charles ahead of his sister's funeral in 1997.
The Earl alleges that his former brother-in-law told him "we'll forget her soon enough" - a shocking claim that was followed by a carefully-worded palace statement.
"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," it declared.
It's hard to read King Charles's response and not immediately think back to the message shared by Queen Elizabeth in the wake of Prince Harry and Meghan's Oprah Winfrey interview in 2021. In effect, the monarch's reference to how brotherly grief can "colour memory" is his version of her famous "recollections may vary" line.
Perhaps the King was intentionally trying to mirror it but following in her footsteps at a time of reputational crisis is a careful move. It technically upholds the Royal Family's long-held approach of "never explain, never complain" and respects the other person's freedom to give their own version of events whilst still making it clear their own perspective is very different.
Both King Charles and Queen Elizabeth used their statements as a dignified way to dispute the explosive claims being made without entering into a full-scale public argument. Although they wouldn't normally speak out at all, the sensitive nature of the allegations made it important for them to address them in some way.
Charles Spencer's book hasn't even been published yet and when it's released on 22nd September, there are expected to be a lot more shocking revelations.
In the excerpt he claims he was subjected to a "stream of anger" from the King when he suggested Diana wouldn't have wanted William and Harry (then 15 and 12 years old) to walk in her funeral procession.
Speaking to the BBC now, the King's former communications secretary Julian Payne called the new palace statement "highly unusual". He believes it shows the "strength of feeling that there must have been for them to feel that they needed to go out there and correct it".
Whilst King Charles continues to face criticism linked to Princess Diana, Queen Elizabeth also received a lot for how she reacted after her death.
The late Queen stayed in Scotland with her grandsons until the day before the funeral instead of returning to London immediately to lead the nation in their grief. This time, she released a video message explaining her choice.
"This week at Balmoral, we have all been trying to help William and Harry come to terms with the devastating loss that they and the rest of us have suffered," she said that evening in a public broadcast. "No-one who knew Diana will ever forget her. Millions of others who never met her, but felt they knew her, will remember her. I for one believe there are lessons to be drawn from her life and from the extraordinary and moving reaction to her death."
