Charles Spencer, the younger brother of Princess Diana, has expressed concerns regarding the media’s treatment of Kate Middleton. Despite acknowledging the existence of conspiracy theories surrounding Middleton’s health, he emphasizes that they do not pose as grave a threat as the intrusive behavior exhibited by paparazzi leading up to Diana’s tragic demise in 1997.
During an interview with the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg regarding his latest memoir, “A Very Private School,” Spencer delved into the pervasive online rumors surrounding the wife of his nephew, Prince William, and reflected on the evolution of media practices since Diana’s fatal car crash in Paris, which was swarmed by paparazzi. “I do worry about the erosion of truth,” he lamented to the broadcaster.
When asked by Kuenssberg whether the proliferation of online conspiracies has heightened the potency of press intrusion, Spencer disagreed, asserting that the dangers were more pronounced in the past. “I think it was more perilous back in the day,” he remarked.
“If I reflect on ’97 and Diana’s death—I believe it was so profoundly shocking [and] the circumstances surrounding her demise were so shocking that it compelled the industry supporting paparazzi to reconsider more cautiously what it could and couldn’t do. Not out of moral conviction, but because it was deemed unacceptable by the public.”
Spencer also shed light on his new book, where he discloses being subjected to physical abuse during his childhood at a boarding school. He recounted experiences of abuse inflicted upon him and Diana by a nanny in their home. “I firmly believe that enduring violence in childhood leaves lasting scars, regardless of the household or family,” he asserted.
“That nanny who subjected us to that, she would bang our heads together if we were caught misbehaving. Clearly, this was done without my father’s knowledge, but it was genuinely painful. It wasn’t merely a reprimand. It was a brutal act, and the memory of it still lingers.”
Both William and his younger brother, Prince Harry, attended boarding school from a young age. However, when questioned by Kuenssberg about whether these early experiences might have affected their family dynamics, Spencer refrained from speculating.
“I’m unable to offer insight on that because I can only speak for myself. I think it’s too intimate to project onto other families concerning such significant matters,” he articulated. “Personally, I’ve raised seven children, and I would never contemplate sending any of them away. If they expressed a desire to attend boarding school, they were free to do so. Two of them opted for weekly boarding in their mid-teens, but I couldn’t bring myself to enforce it upon them. It would have shattered my heart.”