Princess Diana’s brother, Charles Spencer, alleges in a new book that King Charles III once suggested the public would “soon” forget the late princess, a claim that has revived scrutiny of the royal family’s attitude toward her in the years after her death.
Spencer’s account, reported by CBS News, centers on a private exchange he says took place with the then‑Prince of Wales following Diana’s 1997 death in a Paris car crash.
What Spencer says happened
According to CBS News, which describes the claim from Spencer’s forthcoming book, the Earl of Spencer writes that Charles showed what he interpreted as “contempt” for his former wife in conversation with him.
In that account, Spencer says Charles told him that the public would “soon enough” forget Diana. The remark is presented in the book as a direct quote: “we’ll forget her soon,” Spencer writes, attributing the words to Charles.
CBS News reports that Spencer frames the comment as evidence of a dismissive attitude toward Diana and her legacy. The outlet characterizes the allegation as one of the more striking personal details in the book, which revisits the period around Diana’s death and its aftermath.
The reported exchange is described as a private conversation. CBS News does not report additional witnesses to the remark.
How the claim has been reported
CBS News, which has seen or been briefed on the book, is the primary outlet publicly detailing this specific allegation so far. Its report states that Spencer recounts the conversation in the context of his broader criticism of how Diana was treated while alive and remembered after her death.
The network notes that Spencer portrays Charles’s alleged comment as part of a pattern of behavior that, in his view, minimized Diana’s importance. The report does not describe any direct response from Buckingham Palace or from representatives of King Charles regarding this specific passage.
Independent corroboration of the alleged remark has not been presented in CBS News’ coverage. The claim currently rests on Spencer’s written account, as described by the outlet.
What is confirmed and what is not
What is confirmed at this stage, based on CBS News’ reporting, is that:
- Charles Spencer has written a book that revisits events surrounding Princess Diana’s life and death.
- In that book, as described by CBS News, he claims that then‑Prince Charles told him that Diana would be forgotten “soon enough,” phrased as “we’ll forget her soon.”
- Spencer presents the line as evidence of what he calls Charles’s “contempt” for Diana.
What is not independently verified at this point is whether the quoted remark was made as Spencer describes. CBS News reports the allegation as Spencer’s account, and does not cite additional sources who were present or documentary records confirming the exchange.
As with many private conversations involving public figures, outside confirmation can be difficult. For now, the public record consists of Spencer’s version of events as relayed in his book and summarized by CBS News.
Why this allegation matters
The claim is notable because it touches directly on how a future king is said to have spoken about one of the most prominent members of the modern royal family, whose death prompted an outpouring of public grief in Britain and around the world.
If Spencer’s account is accurate, the alleged remark would suggest a sharp contrast between the scale of public mourning for Diana and the attitude he attributes to Charles in private. That contrast is central to why the passage is being highlighted in coverage of the book.
CBS News presents the episode as one of several personal disclosures that could influence how readers understand long‑running tensions within the royal family. The report indicates that Spencer’s portrayal is critical of how Diana was regarded and remembered by some senior royals.
Because the claim involves a sitting monarch and a widely scrutinized period in recent British history, further reactions or clarifications may emerge as the book is released and more outlets review its contents. For now, the key development is Spencer’s decision to put this allegation on the record, and CBS News’ decision to foreground it in its reporting.
What to watch next
As of the CBS News report, there is no public comment from King Charles or Buckingham Palace addressing Spencer’s specific allegation. It is also not yet clear whether other news organizations, biographers, or contemporaneous records will corroborate or challenge Spencer’s account once the full text of the book is widely available.
Readers following this story can watch for:
- Official responses, if any, from the royal household or representatives of King Charles.
- Additional reporting from other outlets that have access to the complete book.
- Further context from historians or biographers who have studied the period and may compare Spencer’s account with existing records.
For now, the central, documented development is that Charles Spencer has publicly asserted, in a new book described by CBS News, that then‑Prince Charles told him, “we’ll forget her soon,” about Princess Diana, and that Spencer interprets this as evidence of “contempt” toward his late sister.
