Earl Spencer has warned that the relationship between the press and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex closely "echoes" the intense media scrutiny that targeted his late sister, Diana, Princess of Wales.
In a BBC interview scheduled to air on Sunday evening, Spencer characterized the tabloid coverage of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle as a "cancerous influence." He urged the public and the press to learn from the tragic example of his sister, noting that Diana was "really brought low" by the relentless criticism she faced during her life.
"If you look at an article in a tabloid about Diana or the couple that you were mentioning, Harry and Meghan, you know, they can be really, really unpleasant," Spencer said. While clarifying that he does not speak directly for the Sussexes, he added: "for anyone who’s being destroyed in this way daily, it must be such a cancerous influence in their life."
The remarks come amid a public dispute following the release of Spencer's new memoir about Diana's life. The book contains highly critical allegations about King Charles III, prompting a rare and sharp pushback from Buckingham Palace. On Wednesday, a palace spokesperson stated: "While we do not comment on books as a matter of principle, His Majesty is mindful that the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and colour memory in ways others do not recognise, even many years after such a loss."
Spencer strongly rejected the palace's statement, describing it as "astonishingly provocative and below the belt." He argued that the response was designed to imply he had lied without the King having to personally deny the allegations. "I also thought it was a rather poor imitation of the ‘recollections may vary’ quote, which was a much more elegant way of putting things, but in these circumstances entirely out of place," Spencer remarked, adding that "Diana would be cheering from the rafters at this book."
In an excerpt of the BBC interview released on Friday, Spencer insisted he is telling the truth. He described the King's past comments about his sister as "monstrous." When questioned on whether he possessed evidence to support his claims, Spencer explained: "I told friends and family straight away, close friends and family, about what had been said, because it was so monstrous."
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who recently returned to the United Kingdom from the United States on August 26, have spent years criticizing their treatment by the British press. Prince Harry famously told Oprah Winfrey in a 2021 interview that the tabloid press had established a "toxic environment."
