Earl Spencer says Diana 'would have approved' of deeply personal memoir
Earl Spencer says Diana 'would have approved' of deeply personal memoir
Dorothy Reddin Sat, September 12, 2026 at 7:26 AM UTC
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| Source: GETTY
Earl Charles Spencer offered a first glimpse of his forthcoming memoir about Princess Diana on Friday, describing it as the most personal work of his three-decade writing career.
The 62-year-old shared photographs of the physical copy of Swan Song: Diana, My Sister on social media, calling it "a brother's simple tribute to an extraordinary sister."
Due out on September 22, the book marks the first time the 9th Earl Spencer has spoken openly and at length about his late sister.
The Earl revealed that reading the memoir aloud over three days for the audiobook edition left him with a profound sense of conviction.
"When I finished the recording, I thought: 'That is exactly what I wanted and needed to say - and she would, I reckon, have approved of every word,'" he wrote.
Earl Spencer has long been among the most vocal champions of his sister's memory.
During Diana's funeral in September 1997, he delivered a celebrated eulogy in which he described her as "the very essence of compassion, of duty, of style, of beauty," whilst fiercely condemning the way she had been treated by the media and the royal establishment.
He famously labelled her "the most hunted person of the modern age."
| Source: PA
In a 2017 interview with People, he admitted to being tormented by questions of whether he might have shielded her more effectively.
"I was furious; I wasn't just angry," he said. "But you always think, God, I wish I could've protected her. It was just… it was devastating."
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With Swan Song, Earl Spencer says he is returning to the purpose that underpinned that landmark eulogy: conveying Diana's story as he experienced it.
Earl Spencer explained that a flood of interview requests as the anniversary of Diana's death approached ultimately prompted him to put pen to paper.
| Source: GETTY
"This has convinced me to write down my own thoughts and memories, once and for all, rather than having the discomfort of again reading the opinions of others, many of which are based on untruths that have become accepted over time," he said.
The publication arrives just weeks after the 29th anniversary of Diana's death in a Paris car crash on August 31, 1997.
The Earl stated that his objective mirrors the one he set himself nearly three decades ago at Westminster Abbey.
"The aim of this book is to tell the truth about Diana from her brother's perspective, just as I attempted to do when speaking at her funeral," he said. "I want to speak on Diana's behalf and do so in an openly positive way."
Earl Spencer expressed his hope that the memoir would connect not only with those who lived through Diana's era but also with younger readers encountering her story afresh.
"I would be delighted if those too young to remember her in her heyday feel - after reading this - that they 'get' who she really was," he said.
His protective instinct also extended to Diana's sons; in Prince Harry's memoir Spare, the Duke recalled his uncle's fury at the expectation that the young princes walk behind their mother's coffin, with Earl Spencer reportedly declaring the plan "barbaric."
For the Earl, the essence of Diana transcends her iconic status. He described her as "a one-off, dynamic character, full of love, charisma and self-doubt, who gave life a hell of a go, and left the world a far better place, despite exiting the stage while still so young."
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