Princess Diana during her Panorama interview.Photo: PA Images
Princess Diana’s interview with journalist Martin Bashir on BBC’sPanoramais featured on season 5 ofThe Crown— but the story continued long after what the Netflix drama shows.
In November 1995, less than two years before her tragic death in a Paris car crash, Princess Diana shared her side of the story like never before. In a televised interview, she spoke candidly with Bashir about the struggles of her life in the royal family. Among her revelations included insights about the breakdown of her marriage to the then-Prince Charles, famously saying, “There were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded,” referring to Charles' affair with his current wife, Camilla.
The Princess of Wales also opened up about the pressure of raising young sonsPrince WilliamandPrince Harryas well as her personal struggles with bulimia, self-harm and postpartum depression. Diana called bulimia a “secret disease” that she dealt with for years.
“It was a symptom of what was going on in my marriage. I was crying out for help, but giving the wrong signals, and people were using my bulimia as a coat on a hanger. They decided that was the problem: Diana was unstable,” she said. “The cause was the situation where my husband and I had to keep everything together because we didn’t want to disappoint the public, and yet obviously there was a lot of anxiety going on within our four walls.”
Princess Diana.Brian Rasic/Getty Images
As portrayed onThe Crown, Bashir used deceitful methods to secure his sit-down interview with Princess Diana, but what the show doesn’t cover is how the backlash extended for decades.
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The interview came back into headlines in October 2020, when theSunday Timesalleged thatBashir showed two false bank statementsto Diana’s brother, Charles Spencer, in a bid to convince him that a staff member was leaking information about their family.
“[The BBC] have yet to apologize for what truly matters here: the incredibly serious falsification of bank statements suggesting that Diana’s closest confidants were spying on her for her enemies,” Spencer told PEOPLE. “This was what led me to talk to Diana about such things. This, in turn, led to the meeting where I introduced Diana to Bashir, on September 19, 1995. This then led to the interview.”
Charles Spencer and Princess Diana.Amanda Edwards/WireImage; Tim Graham Photo Library/Getty
TheBBC announcedthe following month in November 2020 that they hired former British Supreme Court Judge John Dyson to lead an independent investigation surrounding Diana’s appearance onPanorama.
By this “deceitful behavior, therefore, Mr. Bashir succeeded in engineering the meeting that led to the interview,” Dyson said.
BBC Director-General Tim Davieissued an apologyfollowing the investigation and vowed to never air the interview again.
“It is clear that the process for securing the interview fell far short of what audiences have a right to expect. We are very sorry for this,” Davie said. “While today’s BBC has significantly better processes and procedures, those that existed at the time should have prevented the interview being secured in this way.”
“While the BBC cannot turn back the clock after a quarter of a century, we can make a full and unconditional apology,” he continued. “The BBC offers that today.”
Prince Williamreacted strongly to the findings about his mother, condemning the broadcaster. He said that “the BBC’s failurescontributed significantly to her fear, paranoia and isolationthat I remember from those final years with her.”
Prince Harryalso released a powerful statement in response to the inquiry, saying, “Our mother was an incredible woman who dedicated her life to service. She was resilient, brave, and unquestionably honest. The ripple effect of a culture of exploitation and unethical practices ultimately took her life.
“To those who have taken some form of accountability, thank you for owning it. That is the first step towards justice and truth. Yet what deeply concerns me is that practices like these— and even worse — are still widespread today. Then, and now, it’s bigger than one outlet, one network, or one publication.
“Our mother lost her life because of this, and nothing has changed. By protecting her legacy, we protect everyone and uphold the dignity with which she lived her life. Let’s remember who she was and what she stood for.”
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Martin Bashir.Mark Allan/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty
As for Bashir, the journalistquit his post at the BBCin 2021 ahead of the network’s release of the inquiry report surrounding his interview with Princess Diana.
In his first interview after the results of the inquiry were released,Bashir said he was “deeply sorry.”
“I never wanted to harm Diana in any way and I don’t believe we did,” he toldThe Sunday Times. “Everything we did in terms of the interview was as she wanted, from when she wanted to alert the palace to when it was broadcast to its contents.”
“I can’t imagine what their family must feel each day,” he continued.
While speaking withThe Sunday Times, Bashir specifically said that showing Spencer the forged bank documents “was wrong” and something he “deeply regrets” — although he claimed that “had no bearing” on his interview with Diana.
Asked if he will be able to forgive himself, Bashir replied, “That’s a really difficult question because it was a serious error. I hope that people will allow me the opportunity to show that I am properly repentant of what happened.”
source: people.com
