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PRINCESS Diana’s brother asks BBC to investigate fake bank statements allegedly helped secure landmark interview with her
Charles Spencer, 56, accused the company of « money laundering » in a dramatic letter that blames Martin Bashir for the way he persuaded Royal to speak on Panorama in 1995
He expressed his outrage at the Beeb’s « sheer dishonesty » during this sensational interview and claimed he did not accept « the full gravity of the situation »
Earl Spencer also told managing director Tim Davie that Bashir showed him forged bank accounts claiming to falsely show that two high courtiers were being paid by the security services to obtain information about his sister, in the hope that this would allow him to be introduced to Diane
Before M Davie did issue a partial apology last week, M Spencer had said it was « patently false » for the BBC to say that bank statements were irrelevant
According to the Daily Mail, in an October 23 email Earl Spencer wrote: « If I hadn’t seen these statements, I wouldn’t have introduced Bashir to my sister »
He added: « The sheer dishonesty of what I saw on the BBC 25 years ago – both in Bashir and his colleague’s actions to get the interview, and the laundering under the name by Tony Hall – demands it «
The interview, in which Diana told Bashir « there were three people in the marriage » – a reference to her ex-husband’s relationship with Camilla Parker Bowles – drew 23 million viewers
But now new allegations have emerged that the BBC got the scoop under a false pretense
The institution eventually launched its own investigation into the forged document which concluded in April 1996 that: « The BBC was able, independently, to verify that these documents were not put to any use which have a direct or indirect impact on the Panorama interview with the Princess of Wales «
But renewed publicity around the 25th anniversary of the interview and the replay of the allegations against Bashir, prompted Earl Spencer to take over the case
Bashir has also been accused of exploiting the princess’ fears that her private conversations will be tapped by the Secret Service to secure a meeting
In response to the BBC’s 1996 investigation, Bashir claimed the statements were shown to Earl Spencer after he had already agreed to introduce him to his sister for an interview with her
Charles Spencer insists it is a ‘lie’ and has also produced proof of a letter written to him by Bashir, in which the journalist tries to exert additional pressure on himself and Diana to cooperate
Bashir had referred to salacious rumors circulating about his children’s nanny, Tiggy Legge-Bourke, having a « recurring intimacy » with a « particular person »
In his letter, Bashir makes a series of assertions and says that Miss Legge-Bourke is « eager to distract a lot of attention »
The nanny’s relationship with William and Harry had led to Diana’s jealousy and in 1995 the princess was also concerned about the closeness between Miss Legge-Bourke and her ex-husband
A BBC spokesperson said: « We would never comment or confirm private correspondence As people know Martin Bashir is gravely ill at the moment
« The BBC is as open as possible to the events of a quarter of a century ago
« Our records show that the BBC’s investigations into these events centered on whether the Princess of Wales was misled or not, and they show that the key BBC information was the statement handwritten by the Princess of Wales, who said she had not seen the mock documents and had no role in her decision to participate in the interview
« If anyone has important new information that they would like to share with us, we encourage them to do so
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Diana, Princess of Wales, Charles Spencer, Panorama, BBC, Martin Bashir
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