Prince William issues scathing criticism of BBC after Bashir-Diana interview inquiry
Scotland Yard has said it will “assess the contents” of Lord Dyson’s report finding major failings in the BBC’s handling of Martin Bashir’s explosive 1995 Panorama interview with Diana, Princess of Wales.
Previously, police had decided against pursuing a criminal investigation into the controversy, which saw Mr Bashir commission fake bank statements to gain access to Diana. However, now they say they will review the report “to ensure there is no significant new evidence”.
Meanwhile, both Prince William and Harry have condemned the BBC over the independent inquiry’s findings, with Lord Dyson asserting that the covered up “deceitful behaviour” by Mr Bashir to obtain the explosive interview with Princess Diana more than two decades ago.
Prince William has said that he believed the interview had fed directly into the “fear, paranoia and isolation” his mother endured in the final years of her life, while, in a separate statement, Harry said that ultimately it was “the ripple effect of a culture of exploitation and unethical practices” that ultimately took Diana’s life.
In an interview for his new docuseries with Oprah Winfrey called The Me You Can’t See, the Duke of Sussex said that his family did not speak about the loss of his mother in the years after her death.
He said he was expected to cope with his suffering on his own, telling Oprah: “My father used to say to me when I was younger, he used to say to both William and I, ‘Well it was like that for me so it’s going to be like that for you.”
BBC media editor says inquiry’s findings show ‘appalling betrayal’ of broadcaster’s principles
The BBC has been left “severely injured and scarred” after the findings of Lord Dyson’s inquiry into the broadcaster’s 1995 Princess Diana interview came to light, BBC media editor Amol Rajan has said.
“The BBC as an organisation is found to have withheld information from the public which funds it and which it was set up to serve,” Mr Rajan told BBC News presenter Sophie Raworth in an interview.
“I think that is an appalling betrayal of the principles on which it was founded,” he said.
Watch: BBC ‘severely injured and scarred’ following inquiry into Diana interview, Media Editor Amol Rajan says
BBC Media Editor Amol Rajan says the broadcaster has been left “severely injured, probably scarred” by an independent inquiry that found it covered up “deceitful behaviour” by journalist Martin Bashir to obtain an explosive 1995 interview with Princess Diana.”The BBC as an organisation is found to have withheld information from the public which funds it and which it was set up to serve,” Rajan tells BBC News presenter Sophie Raworth. “I think that is an appalling betrayal of the principles on which it was founded.”
Chantal Da Silva21 May 2021 11:12
Harry says one of Archie’s first words was ‘grandma’
The Duke of Sussex has said that one of his son’s first words was “grandma” as he described his sadness at nothing having his mother, Diana, Princess of Wales, there to see Archie grow up.
Speaking in the fifth episode of Apple TV’s The Me You Can’t See, Prince Harry’s new mental health documentary series with Oprah Winfrey, the duke said he was “really sad” that his mother never got to meet Archie.
Harry said that Archie had learned the word “grandma” because of a picture of Diana in the nursery at their Los Angeles home.
Of Archie, Harry said: “We’ve got a beautiful little boy who keeps us busy, who keeps us running around.
“He makes us laugh every day which is great.
“We got two dogs and then another little baby girl on the way, I never dreamt that,” he said.
The duke said he had “no doubt” that his mother would be “incredibly proud” of the life he is living.
Additional reporting by PA
Chantal Da Silva21 May 2021 11:08
Graphic designer commissioned to create false documents says BBC apology did the ‘absolute minimum’
Graphic designer Matt Wiessler, who was commissioned by Martin Bashir to create fake-up documents in the effort to secure the BBC’s 1995 interview with Princess Diana has said an apology offered to him by the BBC did the “absolute minimum”.
Mr Wiessler was asked to create fake documents suggesting payments had been made into the bank account of Alan Waller, a former employee of Earl Spencer, Diana’s brother, Patrick Jephson, Diana’s private secretary and Richard Aylard, private secretary to the Prince of Wales.
The documents were meant to suggest that all three individuals were being paid to surveil the princess.
Speaking on the Today programme, Mr Wiessler said his business folded after it was blacklisted by the BBC after he said he blew the whistle on Mr Bashir’s tactics.
Friday that his business had folded as a result of being blacklisted by the BBC, after blowing the whistle on Mr Bashir’s tactics.
He said he received a “well-crafted letter” from the BBC at 10pm on Thursday apologising for the scandal.
The graphic designer was not impressed, however, asserting that the letter did the “absolute minimum” to acknowledge the impact the incident had on his life.
“Only under duress do we get some sort of apology and some sort of acknowledgement,” he said.
Chantal Da Silva21 May 2021 10:35
Young British people want to abolish monarchy, poll shows
A recent poll has suggested that young people in Britain are ready to do away with the monarchy.
The YouGov survey found that at least 41 per cent of people aged 18 to 24 prefer an elected head of the state as compared to 31 who want a king or a queen.
The findings represent a reversal of what the majority wanted two years ago, when at least 46 per cent said they preferred the monarchy and only 26 per cent wanted it gone.
Maroosha Muzaffar has more on the survey’s findings:
Chantal Da Silva21 May 2021 10:20
Harry says his family did not speak about Diana’s death
Prince Harry has said that his family did not speak about Diana’s death.
Speaking in an interview for his new docuseries with Oprah Winfrey called The Me You Can’t See, the Duke of Sussex also suggested that he was expected to simply cope with his suffering on his own.
“My father used to say to me when I was younger, he used to say to both William and I, ‘Well it was like that for me so it’s going to be like that for you’,” Harry said.
“That doesn’t make sense. Just because you suffered doesn’t mean that your kids have to suffer, in fact quite the opposite – if you suffered, do everything you can to make sure that whatever negative experiences you had, that you can make it right for your kids,” he added.
Harry said his family told him to “play the game” and things would get better.
But, he said that simply was not his path, telling Oprah: “I’ve got a hell of a lot of my mum in me.
“The only way to free yourself and break out is to tell the truth.”
Additional reporting by PA
Chantal Da Silva21 May 2021 10:05
Harry does EMDR therapy with Oprah – what is it and how does it work?
In his new docuseries with Oprah Winfrey, The Me You Can’t See, Prince Harry shows how EMDR – or Eye movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing therapy, works.
The therapy employs a series of eye movements to aid in the process of coming to terms with repressed traumatic experiences.
“EMDR is always something that I wanted to try and that was one of the varieties of different forms of healing or curing that I was willing to experiment with, and I never would have been open to that had I not put in the work and the therapy that I’ve done over the years,” he told Oprah.
Read on to find out more about EMDR and what Harry had to say about the approach:
Chantal Da Silva21 May 2021 09:52
The biggest revelations from Harry’s interview with Oprah
Prince Harry has sat down with Oprah Winfrey for a second time in a candid discussion about his mental health struggles.
In his interview, which was filmed for a docuseries released today on Apple TV+, titledThe Me You Can’t See, Harry also opens up about his experience losing his mother.
Here, Chelsea Ritschel looks at the biggest revelations to come out of the interview:
Chantal Da Silva21 May 2021 09:46
‘They let my mother down’: William and Harry’s full statements on BBC’s Diana interview
Prince William and Harry have both struck out at the BBC after an independent inquiry found that “deceitful behaviour” was used to secure the broadcaster’s explosive 1995 interview with their mother, Diana, Princess of Wales.
William said he was left feeling “indescribable sadness” after the report’s revelations came to light. He further blamed the BBC for having “contributed significantly” to his mother’s “fear” and “paranoia” in the final years of her life.
Meanwhile, Harry has praised his mother as “incredible”, but said the “ripple effect of a culture of exploitation and unethical practices ultimately took her life”.
See William and Harry’s responses to the Dyson inquiry in full:
Chantal Da Silva21 May 2021 09:42
BBC Panorama incident ‘should never happen again’, Buckland says
Justice Secretary Robert Buckland has said it is “incumbent upon everybody” to make sure the 1995 BBC Panorama incident never happens again.
Appearing on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, the Lord Chancellor was asked if the Government would use the story as an “excuse” to “tackle the BBC”.
“I don’t think anybody should be using this very serious set of revelations as an excuse to do or not do anything,” he replied.
“The facts, sadly, speak very much for themselves.
“We’ve heard the reaction of the family and I think it’s incumbent upon everybody to soberly and calmly go through what has happened here, and to make appropriate changes in order to ensure that this sort of thing can never and should never happen again,” he said.
Chantal Da Silva21 May 2021 09:33
BBC Panorama incident ‘should never happen again’, Buckland says
Justice Secretary Robert Buckland has said it is “incumbent upon everybody” to make sure the 1995 BBC Panorama incident never happens again.
Appearing on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, the Lord Chancellor was asked if the Government would use the story as an “excuse” to “tackle the BBC”.
“I don’t think anybody should be using this very serious set of revelations as an excuse to do or not do anything,” he replied.
“The facts, sadly, speak very much for themselves.
“We’ve heard the reaction of the family and I think it’s incumbent upon everybody to soberly and calmly go through what has happened here, and to make appropriate changes in order to ensure that this sort of thing can never and should never happen again,” he said.
Chantal Da Silva21 May 2021 09:33