Earl Spencer is facing renewed questions over his decision to publish a revealing memoir about Princess Diana, after an old interview resurfaced in which he vowed he would never profit from his sister’s death.
The memoir, Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, is due to be published in the UK by Penguin Michael Joseph next Tuesday, with extracts already being serialised. The book contains a series of highly critical claims about the Royal Family, including Earl Spencer’s account of conversations with the late King Charles following Diana’s death in 1997.
Publishing sources cited by The Sun claim Spencer received an advance of between £750,000 and £1million for the memoir, while suggesting the book could eventually generate between £5million and £10million if it performs strongly in the US.
The figures have not been publicly confirmed by Spencer or his publisher.
Earl Spencer’s old promise about Diana
The controversy centres on comments Spencer made in a 1998 BBC interview, shortly after Diana’s death.
Asked about the possibility of making money from his sister’s life, he said:
“Can you imagine anybody making a profit out of their brother or sister’s death? I mean it’s so low it’s inconceivable … I’ll never profit from Diana’s death.”
That statement has now been brought back into focus as his memoir prepares to reach readers.
Royal author Christopher Wilson accused Spencer of contradicting his earlier position, claiming that the Earl had repeatedly made money through his association with Diana and her legacy.
Spencer’s representatives declined to comment on the latest criticism.
Memoir contains fresh claims about King Charles
Much of the current controversy surrounding Swan Song stems from Spencer’s account of the aftermath of Diana’s death.
He claims that then-Prince Charles was “giddily elated” following his former wife’s death and alleges that Charles told him during a telephone conversation: “Rest assured, we will forget her soon enough.”
Buckingham Palace has pushed back against the account, saying that grief between siblings can affect judgment and colour memories.
Spencer, however, has strongly defended his recollection.
Speaking to BBC journalist Laura Kuenssberg from his 15,000-acre Althorp estate in Northamptonshire, he insisted that he remembered the conversation clearly.
“I can tell you here and now, those are exactly the words he said,” Spencer said.
He added that he had only spoken to Charles twice in his life and claimed he had been “hyper-alert” to what the then-prince was saying.
The account is one of several passages in the memoir that have drawn criticism from royal observers.
Claims about the late Queen
The book also contains an account of the late Queen Elizabeth II’s initial response after news reached the Royal Family that Diana had been involved in a car crash in Paris.
According to Spencer, the Queen’s first reaction was “tetchy” and she asked: “What is she up to now?”
The claims form part of Spencer’s broader recollection of the period surrounding Diana’s death and his relationship with members of the Royal Family.
They remain Spencer’s recollections and have been disputed or questioned by people close to the events.
How much could the memoir make?
According to publishing sources quoted by The Sun, Spencer’s reported advance was between £750,000 and £1million.
One source claimed that the relatively modest advance reflected changes during negotiations, with the number of publishers involved reportedly falling from two to one, leaving Penguin.
The same source suggested that strong American sales could eventually push Spencer’s earnings from the book to between £5million and £10million.
The source also claimed that negative reaction in Britain could affect the book’s performance domestically, while predicting stronger interest in the United States.
Those financial projections are estimates rather than confirmed earnings.
The controversy has nevertheless revived a much broader question about the money generated from Diana’s legacy over the decades since her death.
Spencer’s previous Diana exhibition
Spencer has previously faced scrutiny over commercial projects associated with his sister.
An exhibition titled Before Diana: A Celebration opened at the Spencer family’s ancestral home, Althorp, in 1998 and remained there until 2013.
The exhibition featured items connected with Diana, including the Emanuel wedding dress she wore when she married Charles in 1981.
According to figures cited by The Sun, around 2.5million people visited the exhibition. With adult admission priced at £15, that would represent potential ticket revenue of £37.5million, although that figure does not establish how much money Spencer personally received or how much was ultimately donated to charity.
The exhibition also travelled overseas, including to Canada and the United States.
Spencer’s team had previously indicated that proceeds were connected with charitable causes, but questions have since been raised over the amount that reached good causes.
Wilson claimed Spencer had made substantial sums through his association with Diana.
His property empire
The financial questions come despite Spencer’s substantial property interests.
An audit cited by The Sun identified at least 159 houses, properties and parcels of land connected to his wider estate.
His holdings include Althorp, where Diana is buried on an island, as well as Spencer House near London’s Green Park.
Spencer House is currently leased to RIT Capital Partners and is also opened to visitors for tours.
Many of Spencer’s properties are held through companies controlled by him via private trusts.
In December last year, he was also ordered to pay £2million in legal costs following a privacy dispute involving his then-girlfriend Cat Jarman and his former wife Karen. Jarman later became his fourth wife.
Critics accuse Spencer of hostility towards the Royal Family
The memoir has generated particularly strong criticism because of Spencer’s portrayal of Charles.
Royal commentator Jennie Bond, a former BBC royal correspondent, said the depiction of Charles did not resemble the man she knew.
She rejected the suggestion that Charles was vindictive or malicious and described Spencer’s book as unusually hostile.
Christopher Wilson also portrayed Spencer as deeply resentful towards the Royal Family, although those comments represent Wilson’s interpretation rather than an established finding about Spencer’s motives.
The Earl has defended his account of events and said he is simply telling the truth as he remembers it.
William stays out of the dispute
The revelations about Spencer come as Prince William continues to avoid becoming publicly involved in the dispute.
Royal commentator Phil Dampier argued that William would likely find the renewed focus on his mother’s death difficult but has chosen not to enter into a public confrontation with either his uncle or his brother.
William has previously spoken publicly about Diana, including in relation to the controversy surrounding Martin Bashir’s 1995 Panorama interview.
He has generally avoided responding to every new claim concerning his family.
William and Catherine were recently seen visiting the Isle of Bute in Scotland, where they met local residents and continued with their public programme.
Dampier suggested that William’s attention is instead focused on his own family, his responsibilities within the Duchy of Cornwall and his preparations for his future role as King.
Prince George has recently started at Eton, while William continues to promote causes including homelessness and the Earthshot Prize.
A long-running royal family divide
Spencer’s memoir adds another chapter to the continuing public scrutiny of the events surrounding Diana’s life and death.
Nearly three decades after her death, her legacy remains closely connected to the fortunes of the Spencer family and the modern Royal Family.
The Earl’s decision to publish his recollections has now placed those memories, including his allegations about Charles and the late Queen, back at the centre of public debate.
At the same time, his reported financial arrangements for the book have revived his 1998 promise that he would never profit from Diana’s death.
Whether readers ultimately view the memoir as a personal account, a historical recollection or a commercial project will depend in part on how they assess Spencer’s version of events—and the unresolved questions surrounding the money generated by Diana’s enduring legacy.