Prince William Spoke Out About Princess Diana's BBC Interview

belfast, northern ireland september 09 prince william, duke of cambridge meets with chiefs of the psni, fire service and ambulance service, as he attends a psni wellbeing volunteer training course to talk about mental health support within the emergency services at psni garnerville on september 09, 2020 in belfast, northern ireland photo by tim rookepoolsamir husseinwireimage

(Image credit: Pool/Samir Hussein)

published 19 November 2020

Prince William has "tentatively welcomed" a new investigation into Princess Diana's controversial 1995 interview with the BBC.
The broadcaster will investigate how journalist Martin Bashir secured the bombshell Panorama interview, during which Diana spoke candidly about the breakdown of her marriage to Prince Charles.
"The independent investigation is a step in the right direction," William said.

Prince William called news of a new investigation into Princess Diana's controversial 1995 Panorama interview "a step in the right direction," in a statement released by Kensington Palace. As the Guardian reports, the BBC have appointed former supreme court judge Lord Dyson to lead an investigation into how journalist Martin Bashir secured the interview with Diana, in which she spoke candidly about the breakdown of her marriage to Prince Charles and her struggles with royal life.

Kensington Palace said William "tentatively welcomed" the new investigation into the interview. The Duke of Cambridge added, "The independent investigation is a step in the right direction. It should help establish the truth behind the actions that led to the Panorama interview and subsequent decisions taken by those in the BBC at the time."

According to the Sunday Times, Bashir showed mocked-up bank statements to Diana's brother, Charles, Earl Spencer, in order to convince him that members of his family's staff were being paid by the secret services to leak information on Diana. In the original investigation into the circumstances of the interview, the Guardian reports, the BBC cleared Bashir of wrongdoing, concluding he "wasn't thinking" when he asked for the fake bank statements to be created.

The BBC also said during the original investigation that they received a handwritten note from Diana, clarifying that she was not coerced into the interview and did not agree to take part as a result of the forged bank statements. The broadcaster subsequently claimed to have lost the note, before announcing last week that it had been located.