Charles Spencer Says King Charles Seemed ‘Like a Lottery Winner’ After Diana’s Death

In a forthcoming memoir, Princess Diana’s brother claims the future king appeared “euphoric” when they spoke after learning of her death in Paris in 1997. Buckingham Palace has strongly rejected the allegations.

Few accusations have painted a more troubling picture of the aftermath of Princess Diana’s death than the account now put forward by her brother, Charles Spencer.

In Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, a memoir scheduled for publication next week, Earl Spencer revisits the hours following Diana’s fatal car crash in Paris on August 31, 1997. Among the book’s most striking claims is his recollection of a phone call with the then-Prince Charles, whom he remembers as appearing unusually upbeat after receiving the news.

According to excerpts published by the Daily Mail, Spencer was asleep at his home in Cape Town, South Africa, when his sister Jane phoned during the night to tell him about the crash. As word spread, a stream of calls followed from relatives and acquaintances struggling to come to terms with the tragedy.

One of those calls, Spencer recalls, came from the future king.

“Unlike all the others who called me, who were stunned, barely able to express their condolences and offer help, he seemed euphoric, like a lottery winner, I remember thinking at the time,” Spencer writes in the memoir.

The allegation is one of several highly critical recollections contained in the book, which draws on Spencer’s memories of conversations and events during the emotionally charged period that followed his sister’s death nearly 30 years ago.

Buckingham Palace has already issued a forceful rebuttal to claims emerging from the memoir. On Wednesday, it strongly rejected another assertion attributed to Spencer, namely that Charles allegedly remarked of Diana: “We’ll forget her soon enough.”

Without addressing the book directly, a Palace spokesperson responded with a pointed statement.

“While, as a matter of principle, His Majesty does not comment on books, he is aware that the grief of sibling bereavement can cloud reason, affect judgment and alter memories in ways others cannot perceive, even many years after such a loss,” the spokesperson stated.

The response amounted to a clear rejection of Spencer’s version of events surrounding the days after Diana’s death.

Representatives for Prince Harry declined to comment on the memoir. Buckingham Palace likewise referred inquiries back to its earlier statement dismissing Spencer’s account of what occurred following the fatal crash in Paris.

The latest allegation was also challenged by Dickie Arbiter, former press secretary to Queen Elizabeth II, who dismissed the claims as “nonsense.”

Speaking to BBC Newsnight, Arbiter maintained that Charles had been “devastated at the time” and argued that the behavior described by Spencer was entirely out of character.

“There is no way he could ever have said anything like that. Charles Spencer is just talking nonsense,” Arbiter insisted.

Royal commentator Jennie Bond also questioned the account, describing Spencer’s portrayal as an “extraordinary” and “vindictive” recollection.

Speaking to BBC Breakfast, Bond noted that she had no reason to doubt Spencer’s sincerity in recounting his memories, while adding that conversations are often remembered differently by the people involved.

“I have no reason to doubt that this is his memory of what happened, but there are usually two sides to a conversation and two sides to a story,” Bond observed.

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