Prince William: We need to know the truth - as he backs BBC probe
PRINCE William last night hailed the appointment of a retired top judge to ‘ unearth the truth’ about his mother’s Panorama interview.
He said John Dyson’s Princess Diana inquiry was ‘a step in the right direction’.
The former British Supreme Court judge was unveiled by the BBC yesterday as the eminent head of a probe into allegations of forgery, deceit and cover-up surrounding Martin Bashir’s scoop with Diana.
Mr Bashir allegedly peddled 32 lies and vile smears to the vulnerable princess to clinch his explosive 1995 Panorama interview in which she famously said: ‘ There were three of us in this marriage.’
William, who was 13 when the interview rocked the royal family, tentatively welcomed the probe. ‘The independent investigation is a step in the right direction,’ he said. ‘It should help establish the truth behind the actions that led to the Panorama interview and subsequent decisions taken by those in the BBC at the time.’ A source close to William added: ‘ Well of course this is in part about protecting his mother’s legacy, so it is a very personal matter for William. He has kept a close eye on what’s unfolded but believes things are moving in the right direction. ‘The BBC has kept him informed appropriately.
In the end, what he wants is the same as everyone else – for the truth to be unearthed and any appropriate action taken.’
Diana’s brother Earl Spencer – who has been demanding an inquiry into the ‘sheer dishonesty’ – yesterday told friends he was pleased such a senior retired judge had been appointed.
Between 2012 and 2016, Judge Dyson, 77, was the second most senior judge in England and Wales. He said: ‘This is an important investigation which I will start straight away. I will ensure it is both thorough and fair.’
Earl Spencer has revealed a jaw-dropping string of lies Mr Bashir allegedly peddled to gain Diana’s trust, including cruelly playing to her paranoias by pretending he had evidence her staff were spying on her to newspapers and MI5.
The interview led to the Queen demanding t hat Charles and Diana swiftly divorce. The princess died in a car crash in August 1997, long after she had lost her royal protection officers.
After two weeks of damning revelations, the BBC’s new director-general Tim Davie pledged yesterday: ‘The BBC is determined to get to the truth about these events and that is why we have commissioned an independent investigation.’
Its formal terms of reference include finding out ‘what steps did the BBC and in particular Martin Bashir take with a view to obtaining the Panorama interview’ including ‘the matters published in the Daily Mail on 7 November 2020’. That day’s Mail exclusively revealed the extent of the lies Mr Bashir is said to have fed Diana when they met in 1995. To secure his interview, he allegedly said her bodyguard was plotting against her, her friends were betraying her and MI6 had taped Charles and his private secretary planning the ‘end game’.
He is said to have falsely claimed Charles and nanny Tiggy Legge-Bourke went on a secret holiday together and that he was ‘in love’ with her. Mr Bashir allegedly lied that Prince Edward was having treatment for Aids and the Queen was a ‘comfort eater’ with ‘heart problems’. Earl Spencer kept meticul o us notes which are expected to form key evidence. At an earlier meeting, Mr Bashir showed him fake bank statements he ordered a blameless BBC graphics artist to forge, purporting to show Earl Spencer’s security head was in the pocket of a newspaper group.
At the time, Tony Hall – who went on to become director-general – conducted an inquiry, branded a ‘whitewash’ by critics, which exonerated the BBC. Mr Bashir, 57, now the BBC’s religious editor, has been off sick with coronavirus and heart problems. He is understood to have indicated that he will give evidence to Mr Dyson.
Former royal protection chief Dai Davies said: ‘ It seems obvious… the BBC has admitted fraud because its agent – Martin Bashir – faked bank statements for the purpose of gaining an advantage. It’s a simple breach of the law. There is no excuse for Scotland Yard not to investigate.’
A BBC source said: ‘At no stage has anyone at the BBC admitted f orgery or any other criminality.’
‘Determined to get to the truth’