Charles Spencer Kept His Diana Memoir Secret. Even His Family Didn’t Know

The Earl Spencer says neither his sisters nor his nephews, Princes William and Harry, were aware he had written a deeply personal book about Princess Diana until the manuscript was complete and publication was imminent

When Charles Spencer finally disclosed that he had written a book devoted to the life and death of his sister, Princess Diana, the manuscript was already finished. By then, there was little left to discuss and even less to conceal. According to the earl, those closest to him had no idea the project existed.

The surprise extended to his sisters, Sarah McCorquodale, 71, and Jane Fellowes, 69, as well as to his nephews, Prince William and Prince Harry, who learned of the memoir only when its publication was approaching.

“Very, very surprised. They didn’t expect it,” Spencer said, reflecting on the reaction to “Swan Song: Diana, My Sister”, released in Italy by Mondadori.

The account aligns with details published by the French weekly Point de Vue, which reported that the ninth Earl Spencer conducted the project in near-total secrecy. During the writing process, he allegedly spoke about it to virtually no one. Only after completing the manuscript did he reach out to family members to inform them that a book centered entirely on Diana’s life and death was about to appear.

According to the magazine, Spencer described the work as intensely personal and warned relatives that its publication would land with considerable force. Throughout the process, only his fourth wife, Cat, was reportedly aware of the project in its entirety.

The secrecy itself has become one of the book’s defining aspects.

In an exclusive interview with People, Spencer confirmed that neither of his sisters anticipated the memoir’s release. “None of my sisters expected the publication of the book. They’re still processing it,” he said.

Yet the earl was equally clear about what the book was not intended to be.

At a time when royal memoirs are often measured by the controversy they generate, Spencer rejected the idea that his objective was to expose, embarrass or settle scores.

“If I had wanted to write a scandalous book, including one about Charles III, it would have been a bomb,” he said. “I did nothing of the sort. I didn’t want to damage their reputation or disrupt their lives.”

His comments frame the memoir not as an exercise in royal disclosure but as a personal account of Diana from one of the people who knew her longest and best. Even so, its arrival appears to have caught the family at the center of that story entirely off guard.

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(Photo: © AndKronos)