Active discussions

Please or to access all these features

Talk
The royal family
Original poster

Charles Spencer's book Diana Swan Song etc etc . Thread the second.

115 replies

BasiliskStare · 25/09/2026 14:14

There has been interest from some who engaged with the topic , so I'm starting a new thread as we are on page 10 . I honestly didn't think it would engender so much interest.

Let me be absolutely clear here. Threads meander , and sometimes go off topic and sometimes amusingly and interestingly so. My intention with this thread is to discuss the book , related matters eg contemporaneous accounts, reviews , interviews etc I'm also , frankly, interested to see how Piers Morgan's reaction to it goes.

As has been so often said anyone is allowed to post whatever they like on a public forum. I'm just explaining why I have started this thread. I have no intention of policing it .

Let's see how it goes 😎

OP posts:
bluegreygreen · 25/09/2026 22:46

Craftysue · 25/09/2026 22:20

I've read a few of his history books - they've been well researched and historically accurate and I've enjoyed reading them. I'm really surprised that a book about his own sister wasn't thoroughly fact checked especially as he describes himself as a historian.

The inaccuracies are bad, but have been made worse by his publicity interviews where he repeatedly spoke about his 'duty to tell the truth'.

Cathandkin · 25/09/2026 22:48

bluegreygreen · 25/09/2026 22:46

The inaccuracies are bad, but have been made worse by his publicity interviews where he repeatedly spoke about his 'duty to tell the truth'.

Edited
Show quote history

I think something has gone wrong, I know he's a troubled individual, and maybe he's not thought it all through.

bluegreygreen · 25/09/2026 22:49

You could be right.

smilesy · 25/09/2026 23:04

bluegreygreen · 25/09/2026 22:44

I think Channel 5 has had a Piers Morgan:Uncensored slot on Friday evening for a while, so it's not just because of the current issue.

If I remember correctly it's a roundup of the weekly news on his YouTube channel / streaming services.

Show quote history

It is, but this is a “special”. I just saw the beginning and he was talking to Paul Burrell with the weird teeth

Cathandkin · 25/09/2026 23:07

smilesy · 25/09/2026 23:04

It is, but this is a “special”. I just saw the beginning and he was talking to Paul Burrell with the weird teeth

Show quote history

What's going on, dental wise? Spencer had blindingly white teeth and now Burrell. It's most distracting.

AuroraCake · 25/09/2026 23:09

Cathandkin · 25/09/2026 23:07

What's going on, dental wise? Spencer had blindingly white teeth and now Burrell. It's most distracting.

Show quote history

Veneers. People too old for the sudden British rush to make all teeth perfect in teenage years,.and have money, all get veneers.

Cathandkin · 25/09/2026 23:15

AuroraCake · 25/09/2026 23:09

Veneers. People too old for the sudden British rush to make all teeth perfect in teenage years,.and have money, all get veneers.

Show quote history

Yeah, but Persil white?

AuroraCake · 25/09/2026 23:31

Cathandkin · 25/09/2026 23:15

Yeah, but Persil white?

Show quote history

Obviously Americanised ones. Veneers they can do what they like. With crowns
Its all very matching the natural colour.

Original poster
BasiliskStare · 25/09/2026 23:44

Bit late to the party here , have had family round. But to @bluegreygreen 's question

"The people who have read the book also said that Charles S contradicted Diana's previous description of their childhood as having difficult or unhappy times (please can someone clarify this part?) "

My recollection of the book is that CS does not remember "sobbing" at night. He does reference D saying this in the Morton book , but doesn't remember it. Now I would personally not call this an "inaccuracy" in that he was so very young as was D & it's not how he remembers it and accepts the differences in memories. . He does remember Park House as a happy family home. I think D remembered material wealth ( my paraphrase ) but not emotional . CS does say they did get the Hamleys brochures . He describes a very indulgent birthday party for D where their father hired a camel and two zoo keepers. He does say he thought ( in context) their upbringing was not outrageously ( my word ) extravagant . Yes they had staff. Yes the house was large and lovely grounds. However , I do recall he said his father ( Johnny Spencer ) whilst not being the Earl , had to live off the income of a farm he had , and CS remembers him checking through invoices etc. CS remembers his early life as much happier than his sister remembers. On balance , because they were so young , and because he points out the difference between the sobbing in his memory compared to Diana's - I'd give him the benefit of the doubt on this one. If he's describing his memories , and he has acknowledged how they differ - that's fair play ( to me)

Some of the other quite easily checkable facts - not so much 😊

OP posts:
LambriniBobInIsleworthISeesYa · 25/09/2026 23:54

I finished it yesterday and quite enjoyed it, but it’s patchy and the titles of the chapters didn’t work IMO. I also didn’t believe the story about Nelson Mandela visiting Diana’s grave and having to have a bridge put up for him as he was too old to go in a rowboat (or something similar). Seems like a weird thing to make up, but equally didn’t ring true.

jeffgoldblum · 25/09/2026 23:58

I don’t wish to be unkind but the truth of the matter is…..he was an alcoholic….he was pissed ….his recollection is somewhat hazy ……..

FunPartyIdeas · Yesterday 00:05

I've read it and one of the things I didn't like about it was the fact he "challenged" what Diana had said about their childhood. She had basically described it as pretty miserable, but he said it hadn't been. For him, maybe that's his honest opinion, but why is he attempting to contradict his sister's own lived experience?

LadyWiddiothethird · Yesterday 00:11

It’s not he was an alcoholic,he is still one.Once an alcoholic always an alcoholic.I am one,I have been sober over 23 years.Think the Spencer one has only lasted about 18 months……to date,he still drinks non alcoholic wine according to his wife,so his chances of staying sober are about nil.

This would suggest he has been drinking for multiple years,I don’t believe a single word that leaves his mouth.

jeffgoldblum · Yesterday 00:15

LadyWiddiothethird · Yesterday 00:11

It’s not he was an alcoholic,he is still one.Once an alcoholic always an alcoholic.I am one,I have been sober over 23 years.Think the Spencer one has only lasted about 18 months……to date,he still drinks non alcoholic wine according to his wife,so his chances of staying sober are about nil.

This would suggest he has been drinking for multiple years,I don’t believe a single word that leaves his mouth.

❤️ you are brave and I can’t say how much I admire you for speaking your truth.❤️

bluegreygreen · Yesterday 00:22

There are many stories of siblings remembering the same childhood differently, so I think if he's acknowledging that they do remember is differently that is fair enough.
Thanks for clarifying, @BasiliskStare.

I suppose, though, it does again emphasise that this is not really a story of Diana, but a story of the Spencers (or even Charles Spencer himself) and how Diana related to them.

Original poster
BasiliskStare · Yesterday 01:23

@bluegreygreen - my "takeaway" ( don't like the word but you get my gist) is that your comment " I suppose, though, it does again emphasise that this is not really a story of Diana, but a story of the Spencers (or even Charles Spencer himself) and how Diana related to them." is not a bad summary of the book. If someone is expecting huge revelations about Diana, I'm not sure this is the book. Some things which are from his perspective , yes interesting. Personally I thought some of the more interesting passages were about his eulogy and what he drafted and then changed. But as you say , I think you learn more about the Spencers and CS than you learn about Diana in this book. Now , it's his book , he can write what he likes. If I'm honest I think there's an element of him "reclaiming" Diana for the Spencers. I think there is too much pointed comment about the RF and the tabloid press ( and the PM story might be a case in point) for this to be truly a book about Diana.

That's a personal view and others may read it differently.

OP posts:
Original poster
BasiliskStare · Yesterday 01:32

I don't know if this link works - from DM - interesting in parts on factual inaccuracies.

www.dailymail.com/news/royals/article-16158139/ROBERT-HARDMAN-investigates-Earl-Spencers-shocking-allegations.html

OP posts:
Cathandkin · Yesterday 06:30

Spencer focuses on her appearance too much, imo. Her beauty is often referred to, her bone structure, and at one point he calls her "ravishing". I didn't like that at all.

TypingTootOnMyCommute · Yesterday 06:49

The best I get from my siblings is ‘aye, you look alright’.

I’m not sure I would welcome ‘ravishing’ from them.

Mondommountain · Yesterday 07:20

Cathandkin · 25/09/2026 23:07

What's going on, dental wise? Spencer had blindingly white teeth and now Burrell. It's most distracting.

Show quote history

The veneers are off the scale on both of them, so distracting.

I also think Charles’s Spencer may have had a few tweaks, I know he has lost weight, but I do think he may have been in a plastic surgeons clinic, you don’t lose hooded eyelids from weight loss.

AlwaysRightISwear · Yesterday 08:38

Rather like Harry in Spare he has relied too much on a faulty memory and prob never even thought he need to check it.

It's actually quite interesting as an instance of how time changes our memories. Because I believe he believes he is telling the unvarnished truth.

Cathandkin · Yesterday 09:00

AlwaysRightISwear · Yesterday 08:38

Rather like Harry in Spare he has relied too much on a faulty memory and prob never even thought he need to check it.

It's actually quite interesting as an instance of how time changes our memories. Because I believe he believes he is telling the unvarnished truth.

It speaks of arrogance, who would question me? I am always right, I am titled and important. Whereas a bit of fact checking would have gone a long way.

smilesy · Yesterday 09:12

Cathandkin · Yesterday 09:00

It speaks of arrogance, who would question me? I am always right, I am titled and important. Whereas a bit of fact checking would have gone a long way.

Show quote history

Agree. A bit like how he has approached his “apology” to PM. He grudgingly admitted that he might have got the dates wrong but followed this up by doubling down on the fact that Morgan was surly and snarled. Completely minimising the fact that he was wrong. Not how to win friends and influence people

bluegreygreen · Yesterday 09:50

Have just read that review, linked elsewhere, @BasiliskStare.

It is very clear and dispassionate.

Archive link here https://archive.ph/PMWsO

MrsFinkelstein · Yesterday 10:20

JustAnotherWhinger · 25/09/2026 21:04

I think the big thing might be - will risking its reputation mean it doesn’t make money?

If it makes more money from trashy bios or memoirs with a few iffy recollections than it does from accurate history books then they might not care.

Show quote history

That's the thing. I watched the documentary on The Salt Path, and it featured someone who previously worked at PRH. She said they rarely fact check.

In fact, after the The Salt Path controversy blew up - the book went back to the top of the bestseller lists. That's the bottom line PRH will care about - will it sell?