Newz'Swan Song: Diana, My Sister' is Charles Spencer's take on his sister's life and her unhappy marriage to the now King Charles. (Facebook pic)LONDON: Charles Spencer, brother of the late Princess Diana, is no stranger to writing books about British kings.His previous bestsellers include "Killers of the King" and "To Catch a King" and, while those two works focused on the 17th century, some might say his latest book is along the same lines."Swan Song: Diana, My Sister" will be published on Tuesday, and is his take on his sister's life and her unhappy marriage to the now King Charles. In pre-released excerpts, Spencer claims Charles was "giddily elated" in the aftermath of Diana's death in 1997, reopening a painful episode for the royal family.Spencer, 62, said he wrote the book because it was his duty "as an eyewitness to history", but his version of events has been rejected by Buckingham Palace in unusually strong terms."The pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and colour memory," it said, in a statement that added to the publicity surrounding the book.Charles Spencer (left), Prince Harry and Prince Charles walk alongside the gun carriage carrying the coffin of Princess Diana during her funeral in London in 1997.Godson to Queen ElizabethSpencer was born into a British aristocratic family, with close links to the royal family.
The late Queen Elizabeth was his godmother.He was 17 when his 20-year-old sister, fast becoming the most photographed woman in the world, married the then-Prince Charles in a fairytale wedding in 1981. Spencer told CNN in an interview some years later how at the time he was more interested in "exams and playing my sports at school" than the global event.The wider world, however, was fascinated by the young couple, who went on to have two sons, William in 1982 and Harry two years later. But behind the scenes, the relationship unravelled."I didn't fully understand actually how very difficult things were for her at times," Spencer told Good Morning America in an interview before the book was released."That's one of my regrets.
I wish I could have done more to help her."By the early 1990s, Diana's unhappiness was making headlines across the world, and she and Charles were using the media to brief against each other. They divorced in 1996.A year later, she was killed, aged 36, in a Paris car accident as she was pursued b… LONDON (AP) — A new book published Tuesday by the brother of the late Princess Diana has made headlines around the world with its damning allegations about Diana's ex-husband, now King Charles III, and reopened decades-old wounds within Britain's royal…
He claims the prince “went ballistic” during the argument, and told him: "Rest assured, we’ll forget her soon enough." Spencer also accuses Charles of having “contempt” for his ex-wife and of sounding “elated” after her death.After excerpts of the book were published last week, Buckingham Palace responded with a strongly-worded statement that's rare by the measured standards of the royal household.“His Majesty is mindful that the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and color memory in ways others do not recognize, even many years after such a loss,” it said.Spencer has stood by his claims, insisting to the BBC that he is telling the truth. On the royal rebuttal, he asked: “Is he furious? Is he furious or is he embarrassed?”War of words draws renewed attention to Charles and Diana's stormy historyCharles, then 32, married 20-year-old Lady Diana Spencer in a lavish ceremony at St.
The couple divorced in 1996, and a decade later Charles married Camilla Parker Bowles, now Queen Camilla.Charles Spencer, the 9th Earl Spencer, has long clashed with the royals over their treatment of his older sister.Tensions between the palace and the Spencer family following her death were dramatized in the film “The Queen” and the Netflix series "The Crown."In a searing eulogy at his sister’s funeral, Spencer vowed that her “blood family” would carry on her “imaginative and loving” legacy in raising her two sons. The speech was widely considered a swipe at the royal family.At the time, many in Britain and beyond felt Queen Elizabeth II and the royals were too slow to acknowledge the global outpouring of grief over Diana's death and that the monarchy was deeply out of touch with the publi…
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