Princess Diana’s BBC Panorama scandal explained: why Prince William spoke out about the controversial 1995 interview being investigated for fake bank statements
Over two decades later, new revelations have emerged surrounding the ethics – and legality – of how such an exclusive interview with the late British royal was secured in the first place.
Sources allege that Bashir commissioned the creation of counterfeit bank statements to get Diana to open up about all the salacious details of her royal life and marriage. Diana’s brother, Earl Charles Spencer, also reportedly claims that Bashir made up lies about the royal family so that Diana would participate in the interview.
This month, an independent inquiry was set up to investigate the explosive 1995 interview. But what exactly are the allegations against Bashir, and why kick a 25-year-old hornet’s nest?
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Why do counterfeit bank statements matter?
Not only is the act of forging a bank statement illegal, but the counterfeits were shown to Diana with the intention of compelling her to consent to the interview.
These statements, which falsified payments made to members of the royal staff in exchange for private information about her, may have played on Diana’s fears that the security service were listening in on her private conversations.
Why now?
Although the British media has opened a Pandora’s box for Panorama this year, there were reports about the controversial nature of the interview even during its heyday.
In 1996, The Mail on Sunday published copies of the counterfeit bank statements, and it was later confirmed that a BBC graphic designer had been commissioned by Bashir to make them.
The BBC made an internal inquiry into the interview in 1996, and judged that Bashir was “an honest man”. The graphic designer who made the fake statements, however, was fired.
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The BBC also recently made a statement about the counterfeits, saying that they didn’t have any bearing on Diana’s decision to do the interview. They apparently have a handwritten note from Diana saying as much, which they’ve submitted to the new investigation.
However, the BBC has apologised to the earl for the bank statements – perhaps 25 years too late.
What‘s the royal family saying?
Kensington Palace has released a statement from Prince William calling the investigation “a step in the right direction”.
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But really, what‘s the big deal? It was 25 years ago!
The interview was broadcast in November 1995, arguably catalysing Diana and Prince Charles’ formal divorce not more than a year later. Diana then tragically died in a car crash in August 1997.
Knowing why Diana ultimately went ahead with the interview might give all relevant parties a sense of peace – the earl in particular, who had originally set up the meeting between Bashir and his sister, not realising he had been duped.
An independent investigation might also shed light on the BBC and Bashir’s journalistic ethics, and perhaps media ethics at large in the United Kingdom. If Bashir was just given what was at best a slap on the wrist back in 1996, are there even worse tactics that media outlets might be using to extract information?
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When Princess Diana was interviewed by Martin Bashir, she revealed gritty details about her marriage to Prince Charles and his affair with Camilla Parker Bowles – but did he strong-arm her into the interview with fake bank statements?