London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Sep 04, 2025

Princess Diana's note to BBC about Panorama interview recovered

Princess Diana's note to BBC about Panorama interview recovered

A previously missing note from Princess Diana, thought to indicate she was happy with the way her interview by BBC Panorama was obtained, has been found.

The BBC said it had recovered the "original handwritten note" that the princess wrote following the Panorama interview of November 1995.

The broadcaster said it would hand over the note to an independent inquiry.

The probe will look at claims made by Diana's brother about how BBC reporter Martin Bashir secured the interview.

Bashir, 57, currently BBC News religion editor, is recovering from heart surgery and complications from Covid-19 and has been unable to comment on Charles Spencer's allegations.

Earl Spencer called for an independent inquiry earlier this month and said he would never have introduced Bashir to his sister if he had not seen the faked bank statements.

The faked statements wrongly purported to show that the earl's former head of security had been paid by a newspaper group and a mysterious offshore company.

The BBC has apologised for the faked bank statements, but it says the note from the princess says she did not see them and insisted they played "no part in her decision to take part in the interview".



The BBC's not saying how the letter came back into its possession - but it clearly hopes it will help its case when the independent investigation looks into the allegations made by Earl Spencer.

The letter is believed to say that Diana was not influenced by the forged bank statements Martin Bashir had made - and was happy with the way the interview was secured.

If the princess was unaware of or untroubled by the forgeries, or the alleged deceit, it will help the BBC's defence: it says the original investigation was into whether the princess had been misled into giving the interview.

A note from her saying she hadn't would clearly weigh heavily. But the note does not address Earl Spencer's central allegation.

He alleges that the forged documents were part of a series of lies he was told by Bashir, lies that were meant to win his trust and thus gain access to Diana.

What we know of the rediscovered note from Diana doesn't address the serious allegations of journalistic misconduct Earl Spencer has made.

Nor does it help resolve the question of how much the BBC knew back in 1996 when it said the forgeries played no part in securing the interview.

Nearly 23 million people tuned in to watch the Panorama interview, recorded almost 25 years ago, on 20 November 1995.

The interview made headlines when the princess said "there were three of us in this marriage", referring to Prince Charles' relationship with Camilla Parker-Bowles. At the time Princess Diana was separated from Prince Charles but not yet divorced.

Earlier this month the Daily Mail published notes Earl Spencer says he made with Bashir two months before the interview.

Our correspondent Jonny Dymond said the notes appeared to record Bashir "spinning lie after lie about members of the Royal Family, and its staff, in an attempt, Earl Spencer says, to win his trust and that of his sister".

These claims, described by the Mail as "preposterous lies", include that Diana's private correspondence was being opened, her car tracked and phones tapped.

It was also claimed that her bodyguard was plotting against her and close friends were betraying her by leaking stories to the press.

The Princess of Wales died on 31 August 1997, aged 36, in a car crash in a Paris underpass.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Putin Celebrates ‘Unprecedentedly High’ Ties with China as Gazprom Seals Power of Siberia-2 Deal
China Unveils New Weapons in Grand Military Parade as Xi Hosts Putin and Kim
Queen Camilla’s Teenage Courage: Fended Off Attempted Assault on London Train, New Biography Reveals
Scottish Brothers Set Record in Historic Pacific Row
Rapper Cardi B Cleared of Liability in Los Angeles Civil Assault Trial
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Court of Appeal Allows Asylum Seekers to Remain at Essex Hotel Amid Local Tax Boycott Threats
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
Suntory Chairman Resigns After Police Probe
Gold Price Hits New All-Time Record
Von der Leyen's Plane Hit by Suspected Russian GPS Interference in an Incident Believed to Be Caused by Russia or by Pro-Peace or by Anti-Corruption European Activists
UK Fintechs Explore Buying US Banks
Greece Suspends 5% of Schools as Birth Rate Drops
Apollo to Launch $5 Billion Sports Investment Vehicle
Bolsonaro Trial Nears Close Amid US-Brazil Tension
European Banks Push for Lower Cross-Border Barriers
Poland's Offshore Wind Sector Attracts Investors
Nvidia Reveals: Two Mystery Customers Account for About 40% of Revenue
Woody Allen: "I Would Be Happy to Direct Trump Again in a Film"
Pickles are the latest craze among Generation Z in the United States.
Deadline Day Delivers Record £125m Isak Move and Donnarumma to City
Nestlé Removes CEO Laurent Freixe Following Undisclosed Relationship with Subordinate
Giuliani Seriously Injured in Accident – Trump to Award Him the Presidential Medal of Freedom
EU is getting aggressive: Four AfD Candidates Die Unexpectedly Ahead of North Rhine-Westphalia Local Elections
Lula and Putin Hold Strategic BRICS Discussions Ahead of Trump–Putin Summit
WhatsApp is rolling out a feature that looks a lot like Telegram.
Investigations Reveal Rise in ‘Sex-for-Rent’ Listings Across Canada Exploiting Vulnerable Tenants
Chinese and Indian Leaders Pursue Amity Amid Global Shifts
European Union Plans for Ukraine Deployment
ECB Warns Against Inflation Complacency
Concerns Over North Cyprus Casino Development
Shipping Companies Look Beyond Chinese Finance
Rural Exodus Fueling European Wildfires
China Hosts Major Security Meeting
Chinese Police Successfully Recover Family's Savings from Livestream Purchases
Germany Marks a Decade Since Migrant Wave with Divisions, Success Stories, and Political Shifts
Liverpool Defeat Arsenal 1–0 with Szoboszlai Free-Kick to Stay Top of Premier League
Prince Harry and King Charles to Meet in First Reunion After 20 Months
Chinese Stock Market Rally Fueled by Domestic Investors
×