Hello Curious and welcome back! We all surely remember the now infamous interview that Princess
Diana had given to Martin Bashir for the BBC. The situation was a pivotal moment in the
princess’s life and one that resonates with us to this day. But now there is much more
behind that event not just for her but the entire royal family. So after all this time,
what discoveries were made regarding the interview? Was Lady Diana blatantly set up by the company
and by Bashir himself? What is behind the trap that was set for Lady Di and why does
Harry think this is the reason behind her tragic passing? What are Prince William and
Harry’s heartbreaking statements with regards to what was said in the investigation? Why
does Charles Spencer, Diana’s brother has social media in an outcry? And why does it
involve William’s children? Stay with us until the very end to find out the recent
developments on this story but before we continue don’t forget to turn on the notifications
and subscribe to our channel so that you don’t miss any of our future videos.
Let’s get right to the point with this situation that has once again put the late Princess
Diana on everyone’s lips. Not to mention the entire royal family. Prince William has
blamed the BBC of forging documents to get the interview in which they shamelessly deceived
his mother and that also fed into her paranoia, worsened her mental health, and of course
attribute to his parent’s divorce, though it is worth pointing out that they were separated
since 1992.
All this was said following an investigation that the princes themselves and the Earl Spencer
ordered towards that Lady Di interview. Thanks to it, it was found that the BBC had broken
their guidelines to carry out the approach to the interview that would change the life
of the princess. It is no secret anymore that it had left her vulnerable since after the
interview her relationship with Prince Charles had deteriorated, though not the romantic
one at this point, and also the one with the rest of the royal family, especially Queen
Elizabeth II. Prince William had said he was “very saddened” that his mother never
found out that she had been deceived and used. And as he has been inclined to comment about
it he said it was a “major contribution to worsening of my parent’s relationship”
and “has since hurt countless people”. But what has devasted him the most is that
if the BBC had properly investigated the complaints and concerns first raised in 1995, his mother
would have known that she had been created not only by a dishonest journalist but also
by the BBC leaders who looked the other way instead of asking questions. The Metropolitan
Police said they are still evaluating the new findings of that investigation, after
previously leaning against a criminal investigation.
However, the words that came out of Prince Harry’s own mouth went a little further
than the statements made by his brother, as he in turn had blamed the toxic media culture
for his mother’s passing. He said that “The ripple effect of a culture of exploitation
and unethical practices” ultimately led to the end of her life. Now Curious, with
this main topic we could understand a little better Harry’s decision to leave the royal
family seeing that his wife Meghan Markle was being exposed to the same media scrutiny.
Though if you haven’t seen the infamous interview this couple did with Oprah be sure
to check out our previous video but for now, make sure to stay with us to find out if the
speculation of the bribery of Diana’s brother was real.
The younger son of Diana went on to say that his concerns extend to the fact that such
practices “are still widespread today” and highlighting that the situation is “bigger
than a media, a network or a publication”. He also went on to add: “Our mother lost
her life because of this, and nothing has changed. By protecting her legacy, we protect
everyone and uphold the dignity with which she lived her life.
For this scandalous and very serious situation, the BBC has written to apologize to both Harry
and William, as well as Prince Charles and the brother of Lady Di. Matt Weissler, the
graphic designer who first raised concerns about the documents used to secure the interview
with Princess Diana did so after the BBC denied him the job. Speaking with Radio 4 he had
said that he too got sent an apology but that it was “too little too late”. Do you Curious
think that a letter of apology to the royal family is enough for all the damage that they
had caused to the entire family?
But that wasn’t enough criticism. Prince Harry had also condemned Lord Hall, who ran
the investigation as well as the BBC’s then-director general Lord Brit, for not apologizing to
him in person. He effectively accused the BBC of driving his parents to finalize their
divorce and to participate in the events that led to his mother’s passing.
In this case, of course, the younger Prince shows a stronger resentment towards the whole
situation. Since his departure frmo the royal household, he has spoken uncensored about
various but difficult topics of which the media doubt that William, in his position
as the heir to the throne, can give statements that are just as controversial. But it’s
not that he does not say anything about it all. In fact, he has sent a strong message
but carrying on from before, it has been Harry who has been so angry with the media, whereas
William seems to have in one way have made peace with it. As Harry has launched a visceral
attack on the BBC, it is a sign of his deep feelings of pain and dismay.
With regards to the independent inquiry, it yielded lurid results, with now-retired judge
Lord Dyson finding that the interviewer, Martin Bashir, acted “deceitfully” and falsified
documents to obtain the interview. At that meeting in ‘96 which was led by the then
Director of News and Current Affairs Lord Hall, who has been exposed along with the
interviewer.
Lord Dyson had discovered that Bashir had tricked Earl Spencer into introducing the
journalist to his sister by showing him forged bank statements that falsely suggested that
people were being paid to keep the princess under surveillance. If you want to know more
about the Spencers who had remained on the sidelines to this day, we recommend you check
out our previous video by clicking on the link above. Although Charles had broken his
silence and intertwined this interview with his sister’s passing, so make sure you stick
with us to the very end to find out his most recent statements.
While Prince William had called the interview to have “influenced how his mother had answered”
and that it should never be re-broadcast, there were many other people who wanted their
thoughts to be heard. Justice Secretary, Robert Buckland, referred to the evidence obtained
as "devastating" and considered that the BBC and media, in general, should be reformed.
The investigation in itself was started after Earl Spencer made public allegations about
how the interview was obtained.
So, in a few words, the findings had shown that Bashir seriously violated BBC rules by
using fake bank statements that helped him gain the trust of Charles Spencer. And as
we said before, they simply showed fake bank transactions that were supposed to suggest
that the security services were harassing Diana and that two senior aides were being
paid to tell stories about her. The BBC had said the investigation had found that Martin
showed the forged documents to Lady DI’s brother and once he gained his trust enough
to be introduced to Diana, he had his access to the interview.
Not to mention that as the media interest in the interview increased, the BBC had covered
up what the corporate heads of course knew. Lord Dyson had spoken more on this situation
and said that the broadcasting company “did not meet the highest standards of integrity
and transparency that are its hallmark.” However, the most polemic thing in addition
to the shocking statements of the princes was yet to come
Recently Earl Spencer was in the media eye as well, especially after he made declarations
in a new BBC Panorama documentary. In it, he said: “Well the irony is that I met Martin
Bashir on August 31st, 1995 because exactly two years later she died and I do draw a line
between the two events."
He went on to say that for him, this situation is “quite clear” because since he introduced
Bashir to Diana in ‘95 and in his own words he went on to add: "everyone was going to
cease to be trusted, and I think Diana lost confidence in really key people". At this
point, it is essential to mention Patrick Jephson, Diana's former private secretary,
said that the interview "destroyed the remaining links with Buckingham Palace" and left the
princess vulnerable to people who did not have her best interests at heart". It is worth
mentioning that Princess Diana, far from being a public figure, was the first member of the
royal family, who was a symbol of struggle and justice as well as being involved in controversial
issues of social interest, of improvement in the world, where many powerful people could
have been involved, such as the case of her last charitable contribution regarding the
mining in Angola. Those weapons were widely used in conflicts and many of those that failed
to explode during the wars continued to end lives and maim those who stepped on them without
knowing it. An undoubtedly controversial issue for the governments of the people involved
and which is just one example of how the Princess may have had many people who were not 100
percent sympathetic to her causes.
Earl Spencer, who recently trended on Twitter by showing a photograph of him and Diana as
children which had followers tearing up commenting on how similar they look to William’s children
and that Princess Diana would have made an exceptional grandmother, is still in a desperate
fight to clear his name over being directly implicated in bribes to gain access to Lady
Di in his words stating: "for the 25 years I've been waiting for people to stop calling
me a forger and a leaker". Demanding the BBC apologize to him in person, he said: "No one
has come forward. It's weak, calculating and honestly, after 25 years, what they're doing
is disgusting, to this day." So curious, do you think the BBC is still considered a reliable
news outlet?
The interview has marked many firsts for the royals. The iconic line, "There were three
of us in this marriage," referring to her husband's affair with Camilla Parker Bowles,
has made a lot of noise even to this day. In addition to revealing her "intimacy" problems
with Prince Charles, where she said they had a decade of not even touching each other,
had marked this interview as the first time someone had spoken so openly about life in
the Royal Family. Viewers saw her talk about her unhappy marriage to Prince Charles, her
personal affairs, and her eating disorders. Although after the evidence was found, what
did the BBC management explicitly tell Prince Charles in their letter? Stay with us to find
out.
For his part, Bashir is one of the UK's most famous journalists and was also widely publicized
for his iconic 2003 interview with the King of Pop Michael Jackson. Although the BBC in
this case, represented by Lord Hall, said it was wrong to give Bashir the "benefit of
the doubt". Commenting on the case, the BBC's current director-general, Tim Davie, said:
"Although the report states that Diana, Princess of Wales, was interested in the idea of an
interview with the BBC, it is clear that the process for securing the interview fell far
short of what the public has a right to expect.”
Tim Davie sent a letter directly to the Prince of Wales, in which he simply apologized for
Bashir's "shocking and false claims" about the prince, members of his staff, and other
members of the Royal Family involved. According to BBC News' own website, the letter contains
the company's acceptance that Bashir made the claims "with the intention of playing
on the princess's fears, in order to arouse her interest in him, and without concern for
the impact on those he was slandering."
Although if at this point you are wondering, well, what does Martin Bashir have to say
about the actions that could definitely have serious consequences for him then we’re
about to tell you? In short, he has spoken out on the matter and in fact, he has apologized
for the false statements. But, he also said that he defended the evidence he gave 25 years
ago and now much more strongly, stating that the bank statements "had nothing to do with
4Diana's decision to participate in the interview". With all this, Prince Harry has stated that
"For those who have taken some form of responsibility, thank you for owning it. That is the first
step towards justice and truth. What concerns me deeply, however, is that practices like
these, and even worse, are still widespread today. Then, and now, it is bigger than one
medium, one network, or one publication."
So Curious, o you really believe that this interview was the cause of Princess Diana's
passing, as Harry points out? Do you remember what Earl Spencer's words were to the royal
family on the day of Princess Diana's funeral? Do you think this could be a big step in the
breach that has existed regarding Princess Diana's car crash and finally find the perpetrator?
Is there any reality that the royal family and the royal household servants were involved
in persuading the Princess? Let us know your thoughts on this situation in the comments
below and as always don’t forget to like, share and subscribe to our channel. Until
next time!