Earl Spencer Details the Part of Princess Diana's Personality That Wouldn't Be "Encouraged in This Day and Age"
"But the '60s were an innocent, more dangerous time."
After joining the Royal Family, Princess Diana gained a reputation for doing things her own way. While it may have shocked the world when she strayed from traditional royal standards, those closest to her were unsurprised, knowing the late royal always had a brave spirit.
During a recent conversation with Penguin Books, Charles Spencer took a trip down memory lane, pulling out his late father’s old albums to showcase his early days alongside his sister Diana.
He displayed a black-and-white photo of Diana, aged around 8 at the time, jumping into a pool from the top of a waterslide with her hands lifted straight up into the air. The picture reminded Spencer of his sister’s bold personality, which he noted is among the main reasons he wrote his new memoir, Swan Song: Diana, My Sister.
Charles Spencer says he and his sister often got up to "mischief."
Before he could pull out another photo with the two of them wearing "mischievous" smiles, Spencer said, "One of the themes that I wanted to get across in the book was how brave Diana was, even at this age.”
The 9th Earl Spencer recalled Diana “loving the excitement of doing something quite naughty with huge energy.
“I just can't imagine this being encouraged in this day and age,” he admitted. “But the '60s were an innocent, more dangerous time."
Princess Diana arrives at a Vanity Fair dinner party in June 1994.
In his new memoir, Spencer goes into more detail about the life and death of his beloved sister.
"The aim of this book is to tell the truth about Diana from her brother's perspective, just as I attempted to do when speaking at her funeral," he noted in a press release. "As with my eulogy, I want to speak on Diana's behalf and do so in an openly positive way."
