Prince William Declines Questions About Earl Spencer’s Book

Prince William declined to answer questions about his uncle Earl Spencer’s book about his late mother, Princess Diana, during a visit to a community cinema this morning.

The Prince of Wales visited ActOne in Acton, west London, to promote the British film industry and showcase the community role played by independent cinemas.

However, the royal engagement risked being eclipsed by the continuing dispute over the earl’s new book, Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, which was released this morning.

In the memoir, Earl Spencer claims that King Charles said, ‘we’ll forget her soon enough’ after Diana’s death and appeared ‘giddily elated’ following the crash.

The allegations have triggered a public exchange of words between the earl and Buckingham Palace, which responded that ‘the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason’.

As William climbed the steps to the cinema on Acton High Street, a reporter asked: ‘Sir, how do you feel about your uncle’s book, have you read it?’

The prince did not respond. Instead, he quickly entered through the open doors as a royal supporter called out: ‘We love you, William!’

During the visit, William served popcorn to members of the public attending a film. He later apologised for operating the till slowly after a queue began to form.

This evening, William and his wife Kate are due to attend the world premiere of Digger in Leicester Square, alongside stars including Tom Cruise and Riz Ahmed.

The event at the Odeon Luxe cinema comes four years after William and Kate met Cruise at the UK premiere of Top Gun: Maverick in London in May 2022.

Meanwhile, the Mail on Sunday reported over the weekend that Earl Spencer described the palace’s response as ‘a rather poor imitation of the “recollections may vary” quote’—the phrase used by the late Queen in response to allegations made by Harry and Meghan during their 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey.

He said: ‘It is not every day you wake up to find you’ve been gaslit by the King.

‘It was astonishingly provocative and below the belt because it was essentially trying to say I’d lied without the King being able to deny what I’d said.

‘I also thought it was a rather poor imitation of the “recollections may vary” quote, which was a much more elegant way of putting things, but in these circumstances entirely out of place.’

Responding to the claims in the memoir, a palace spokesman said last Wednesday: ‘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.’

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Discussing an alleged dispute over Diana’s funeral arrangements involving her sons, Earl Spencer said: ‘(The King) went ballistic, would be the right term, and started really going for my family as a whole, about their sense of duty, not being adequate enough, and ranted for a while, I have no idea how long, but it was a significant period, and I just listened.

‘And then he stopped, and I thought, “Oh now he’s going to pull himself together and say something more appropriate”. And then he said, “We’ll forget her soon enough”.’

Charles is said to have made the comments about his ex-wife in a row with the earl over whether the then Prince William and Prince Harry should follow Diana’s funeral cortege.

One of Queen Elizabeth II’s senior aides had told the earl that William and Harry were to walk in the funeral procession, prompting the earl to state ‘that’s not going to happen’.

Charles called minutes later and told him that 18 years earlier, he had walked in the funeral procession of his great-uncle, Lord Mountbatten, it is claimed. But the earl pointed out that Charles had been 30 at the time of Lord Mountbatten’s funeral in 1979.

The earl also spoke of how Charles’s phone call following the car crash in 1997 ‘all sounded strangely matter-of-fact’.

One passage of the book read: ‘Unlike my other callers, who were stunned, barely able to articulate their condolences and offers of help, he sounded giddily elated – like a lottery winner, I remember thinking at the time.

‘He let me know he had informed William and Harry of their mother’s death, first thing that morning, in their bedrooms at Balmoral.

‘It all sounded strangely matter-of-fact, given the enormity of the disaster.

‘Looking back now, I suspect the prince’s first reaction must have been to think more of how this event might free him to marry the woman he loved, rather than appreciating the loss of one he did not.’

In another extract of the book – which was serialised by the Daily Mail – the earl told of his memories of the funeral, and his concern for Harry, after he observed a ‘lack of obvious care’ for the then 12-year-old prince.

Separately, it was reported last night that Harry is in talks to make a documentary about his mother to mark the 30th anniversary of her death.

The Duke of Sussex is understood to have asked a number of Diana’s friends and relatives if they would take part in a commemorative film ahead of the milestone in August next year.

Among them is her brother the earl, who has said he penned a book to avoid being a ‘talking head’ in productions about his sister.

The project has not been confirmed, and the prince is understood to be weighing up different ways of commemorating Diana and her legacy.

A source close to Harry said: ‘The Duke has discussed a number of possible projects. Nothing has been finalised or confirmed, and he is still considering the most meaningful way to honour his mother’s legacy during this important anniversary year.’