The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are so keen for privacy they’re taking on three of the UK’s most powerful newspapers.
So it was with abject horror that Harry – from his mansion in California – discovered new claims his late mum Princess Diana may have been coerced into giving what is still regarded as the most blockbuster tell-all in history to the BBC’s Martin Bashir, in 1995, because of falsified bank statements.
It was the moment the royal family plunged into chaos, as the princess wryly peered through her eyelashes at Martin and proclaimed,
“There were three of us in the marriage so, you see, it was a bit crowded.”
According to Diana’s brother Earl Charles Spencer, his sister – racked with pain over the breakdown of her marriage to Prince Charles and mutual accusations of infidelity – was “tricked” into confessing her deepest thoughts in the hour-long interview.
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Among his charges are that Martin “played on a false belief” that princes William and Harry’s nanny Tiggy Legge-Bourke was involved in recurring intimacy with a “certain individual” – allegedly Prince Charles, now 71.
Earl Spencer claims Martin (pictured far right) showed him “falsified bank statements” that courtiers were being paid “for information” on the princess, with sources saying it “played perfectly into Diana’s paranoia over her husband’s affairs – real or imaginary”.
There was an internal BBC investigation in 1996 into how Martin secured the interview but no charges were made.
It was the interview that shocked the world.
(BBC)FINDING THE TRUTH
Diana’s brother is now demanding a “full inquiry” and a posthumous apology for his sister from the government broadcaster – and Woman’s Day insiders are told it’s only the beginning.
“Earl Spencer has a temper on him but it’s nothing compared to how Prince Harry and Prince William will be reacting to this awful news,” says a source.
“Especially Harry, who loathes the London press and is already waging war on several newspapers for alleged phone hacking from years gone by.”
A source in LA close to Harry, 36, and Meghan, 39, says the allegations have “filled him with rage”.
“Harry’s never quite gotten over the fact that he wasn’t able to protect his mother from the pain she went through, and he’s determined to avenge her,” says a source.
“His uncle Charles is one of the few people he still talks to since leaving the royal family, and Charles has Harry’s backing to go after the BBC with the full force of the law.
“It’s reawakened a lot of demons for Harry, whose number one priority is keeping Meghan and his son away from that life of being hounded by Fleet Street.
“He figures if Martin could have pulled off this apparent hatchet job in the days of faxes and paper, they’re much more vulnerable in the digital age to be blackmailed or scammed. Harry will want to make an example out of this right alongside his uncle.”
Diana and her brother shared a special bond.
(Getty)A palace insider says it may even be the rallying cry that brings Harry and William, 38, along with the Earl, back together after their relationship fell apart.
“I’m sure William will want to be involved – he’s close with the Earl and Harry knows they’ll be stronger together,” says a source.
“It could also be what makes things worse, since for William and Charles, it will be harder for them to go up against the BBC. Harry will never understand that.”
