Charles Spencer and Princess Diana.Photo: Amanda Edwards/WireImage; Tim Graham Photo Library/Getty
Charles Spencer, the brother ofPrincess Diana, is continuing to fight for his sister’s legacy as the 24th anniversary of hershocking deathapproaches.
The Earl, 57, announced Thursday that he had won a legal victory over a false claim inThe Timesnewspaper that he’d denied Diana a home following the breakdown of her marriage toPrince Charles(whom Diana wed at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London40 years ago today).
Published under the headline “It’s too simple to blame everything on Bashir,“TheTimes' article also wrongly suggested that the Earl had failed to protect Diana from rogue BBCPanoramareporter, Martin Bashir, who was recently found to have used “deceitful methods” to secure his controversial 1995 interview with the princess.
Most damagingly, the article went on to incorrectly imply that in failing to protect his sister the Earl was partly to blame for her tragic death in Paris on August 31, 1997.
He also included a link to a story in the newspaper’s “Corrections and Clarifications” section admitting the article “wrongly stated that Earl Spencer had refused to assist Diana, Princess of Wales, with the offer of a house after the breakdown of her marriage toPrince Charles.”
“We are happy to report that having considered his sister’s safety, and in line with police advice, the Earl offered the Princess of Wales a number of properties including Wormleighton Manor, the Spencer family’s original ancestral home,“The Timescontinued.
“It was wrong to suggest he had refused to help his sister or had failed to protect her from Martin Bashir and concealed evidence of the latter’s deception. We did not intend to suggest that the Earl was to blame for his sister’s death. We apologise to the Earl and have agreed to pay his costs as well as make a payment to him which he will donate to charity.”
From left: Prince Philip, Prince William, Charles Spencer, Prince Harry and Prince Charles walk behind Princess Diana’s casket at her 1997 funeral.JEFF J. MITCHELL/AFP/Getty
The Earl previously accepted undisclosed libel damages from Associated Newspapers in 2018 over a similar claim in theDaily Mail, which printed that he had acted in an “unbrotherly, heartless and callous way” toward Diana following her split from Charles.
The Earl then offered Diana the use of other homes on the Althorp estate, including the large, 16th century mansion Wormleighton Manor, but she ultimately decided against staying in any of the properties.
Princess Diana’s sister Lady Jane Fellowes speaks with Prince Harry and Charles, Earl Spencer at the unveiling of a statue dedicated to Diana at Kensington Palace on July 1.Alamy Stock Photo
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Despite this latest victory, Spencer says the case is far from settled. In reply to a tweeter who suggestedThe Timesshould pay “a substantial amount” in damages, the Earl wrote, “They’re haggling, of course.”
He added, “No real shame.”
source: people.com
