Key Takeaways
- Charles Spencer says the hostile media coverage of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle carries troubling “echoes” of the scrutiny that devastated Princess Diana.
- Spencer insists he supports both Harry and Prince William rather than taking sides, warning that being “destroyed in this way daily” can become a “cancerous influence” on someone’s life.
- His comments come ahead of his memoir Swan Song: Diana, My Sister and amid a public clash with Buckingham Palace over his account of Diana’s funeral arrangements.
Charles Spencer has spent the past week unloading decades of grievances about how his late sister, Princess Diana, was treated. Now, the 9th Earl Spencer is looking at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle—and says some of what he sees feels disturbingly familiar.
In a new BBC interview, Spencer said the relentless media coverage surrounding the Duke and Duchess of Sussex carries “echoes” of the scrutiny Diana endured before her death in 1997. And while Spencer made clear he isn't joining Team Sussex in the royal family's long-running feud, he wasn't particularly subtle about what he thinks sustained hostile coverage can do to someone.
“I think there's this perception in the media that I'm on Harry's side,” Spencer said. “Well, I'm on my deceased sister's sons' side—both of them.”
Spencer stressed that his loyalty extends equally to Prince William and Harry, saying he'd be there if either nephew needed him and that he tries to remain a “benign figure” rather than joining competing royal camps.
But when asked whether Diana would recognize the kind of attention Harry and Meghan have received, Spencer went straight back to what he witnessed with his sister.
“If you look at an article in a tabloid about Diana or the couple that you're mentioning, Harry and Meghan, they can be really, really unpleasant,” he said. “I think it would be really beholden on people to learn from Diana's example.”
Spencer stopped short of speaking for Harry and Meghan, but described the potential effect of being “destroyed in this way daily” as a “cancerous influence” on someone's life. He said he watched that process up close with Diana, recalling the “tears of despair” he referenced during his famous 1997 funeral eulogy.
“She was really brought low by all that criticism,” Spencer said. “And yeah, I suppose it's a pity when I see echoes of that now.”
The comments arrive amid an extraordinary stretch of public confrontation between Spencer and Buckingham Palace ahead of the release of his memoir, Swan Song: Diana, My Sister.
Spencer alleges that then-Prince Charles told him “we'll forget her soon enough” during a bitter argument over Diana's funeral arrangements. Buckingham Palace disputed his account, saying “fraternal grief” can affect judgment and memory.
Spencer subsequently stood by his recollection and accused the King of attempting to “gaslight” him.
The memoir contains even more explosive allegations about Diana's marriage, including Spencer's claim that his sister once told him her husband was “in love with his valet.” Charles's office previously denied a separate allegation involving the then-prince and a royal staffer, calling it “totally untrue and without a shred of substance.”
Harry, meanwhile, has repeatedly connected his own battles with Britain's tabloid press to what happened to his mother. That history has become particularly relevant since he and Meghan returned to Britain with Archie and Lilibet this summer after six years based primarily in California.
