Prince William set for heartache over Diana portrayal beside 'vile monster' Jimmy Savile in new BBC drama

Prince William is set to be "particularly displeased" over the portrayal of Princess Diana in the new BBC Jimmy Savile drama

Prince Harry Diana Jimmy Savile BBC drama - Princess Diana, Princess of Wales with her sons Prince William and Prince Harry attend the Heads of State VE Remembrance Service in Hyde Park on May 7, 1995 in London, England
(Image credit: Photo by Anwar Hussein/Getty Images)

Prince William is expected to face sadness over the portrayal of his mother, Princess Diana, in the BBC's upcoming Jimmy Savile drama. 

  • It's been claimed that Prince William is "particularly displeased" about the inclusion of Princess Diana in new BBC Jimmy Savile drama, The Reckoning. 
  • The release of the TV show is also thought to be something that will spark more tension between the BBC and William, who shared a statement on Diana's 1995 Martin Bashir interview in May of last year. 
  • This royal news comes after Prince William sparked backlash with an "ignorant" comment made about Ukraine

Princess Diana is set to feature in the BBC's Jimmy Savile drama, The Reckoning, which is set to air later this year, with actress Kate Tickle playing the late Princess of Wales. 

The drama will reportedly portray Diana meeting the pedophile during her time as a working royal family member, married to Prince Charles. 

Now, a TV insider has claimed that the depiction of William's late mother meeting "monster" Jimmy Savile, who is played by Steve Coogan, could spark more tension between the future King and the BBC. 

Prince Harry Diana Jimmy Savile BBC drama - Princess Diana and Prince Charles at the opening of the National Spinal Injuries Centre at Stoke Mandeville Hospital, UK, 4th August 1983

(Image credit: Photo by Hilaria McCarthy/Daily Express/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

"Prince William would have preferred not to see his mother feature alongside this vile monster at all. But he would be particularly displeased that it’s in a BBC show — and one that’s proved so controversial," the source told The Sun

"Although Diana was one of the important people who Savile ingratiated himself with, there were many others whose influence played a greater part in him getting access to young people and hiding in plain sight," they added. 

Prince Harry Diana Jimmy Savile BBC drama - Martin Bashir interviews Princess Diana in Kensington Palace for the television program Panorama

(Image credit: Photo by © Pool Photograph/Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images)

Prince William spoke out last May when a report on The Dyson Investigation into Princess Diana's 1995 interview with Martin Bashir was issued. 

The report found that Bashir had engaged in "deceitful behaviour" to secure the BBC Panorama interview with Diana, during which she famously aired details of her and Prince Charles' turbulent marriage. 

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"It brings indescribable sadness to know that the BBC’s failures contributed significantly to her fear, paranoia and isolation that I remember from those final years with her," William said in the emotional statement. 

"In an era of fake news, public service broadcasting and a free press have never been more important. These failings, identified by investigative journalists, not only let my mother down, and my family down; they let the public down too," he added.

Caitlin Elliott
News Editor

Caitlin is News Editor for woman&home, covering all things royal, celeb, fashion, beauty and lifestyle. Caitlin started on local papers and titles such as Cosmopolitan, Now, Reveal and Take a Break while studying for her Multimedia Journalism degree. She also worked in Fashion PR as a Press Assistant for Arcadia's Topshop before becoming a part of the Now team. Caitlin went on to add the likes of Woman, GoodtoKnow, WhatToWatch and woman&home to her writing repertoire before moving on to her current role.