HARRY ‘HYPOCRISY’
Prince branded ‘embarrassing’ over interview on same US network that showed photo of Diana dying
THE Duke of Sussex was accused of ‘embarrassing’ hypocrisy yesterday for granting his interview to CBS – the same American network that caused outrage by showing a photograph of his mother dying.
In 2004 CBS was condemned when it became the first broadcaster or publisher to show the ‘distasteful’ photo of Princess Diana taken moments after the 1997 car crash in Paris in which she died.
When the same photo later appeared in an Italian magazine, Prince William and Prince Harry issued a rare statement condemning it, saying they were ‘deeply saddened that such a low has been reached’.
But Harry allowed CBS to make millions with the Sussexes’ Oprah Winfrey interview that was broadcast on March 7.
When the network broadcast the photograph of Diana, her brother Earl Spencer said he was ‘shocked and sickened by CBS’s actions’.
The broadcaster was unrepentant, saying the photo was ‘not gory’. No British publication has ever published it.
Royal biographer Hugo Vickers said: ‘It is quite embarrassing for Prince Harry. How could he possibly co-operate with an organisation which some years ago was the only outlet to publish a deeply distressing photo of his mother’s dying moment?
‘It is pretty hypocritical of him. I suppose he didn’t remember, or maybe he had no choice because of contracts signed? If he was still being advised by the Palace, they would have spotted this sort of thing a mile off.’
Former Buckingham Palace press secretary Dickie Arbiter said: ‘The problem with American networks is that they are all about ratings, and advertising and bringing in money. It is not about decency. In 2004 it was publishing a photograph which was in incredibly bad taste. In 2021 it is running a two-hour interview with Meghan and Harry. Both will have made it a lot of money.’
It came as a friend of Prince Charles also accused Harry of ‘hypocrisy’ as he disputed the duke’s claim in the interview that his father had ‘cut him off’ financially. The friend said Charles had continued to support the Sussexes after their move to the US.
The friend told the Sunday Times: ‘What **** ing hypocrisy. When Harry and Meghan left last year, they wanted to become “financially independent”.’
In 2004 CBS was condemned by then prime minister Tony Blair, who said: ‘I think everyone finds it distasteful that there are pictures that can cause distress to the family.’
The CBS programme, 48 Hours Investigates, showed the picture as part of a report called Diana’s Secrets. It was accompanied by a voice-over from French doctor Frederic Mailliez, who arrived at the crash scene in Paris and gave emergency first aid to the princess. He told viewers that Diana ‘still looked beautiful’ as he tried to save her life.
At the time, CBS said the picture was one of several seized from French photographers which formed part of the official investigation into the crash on August 31, 1997. ‘It is not gory in any way, shape or form,’ said CBS.
When the photo was published on the cover of Milan-based Chi magazine in 2006, the princes’ outcry was echoed by Diana’s former equerry and private secretary, Patrick Jephson, who said: ‘I feel sickened and very sad.’
Harry and Meghan also discussed security concerns in the interview and it emerged yesterday that their California home was reportedly breached twice by an intruder. Nickolas Brooks, 37, was arrested and charged with one count of misdemeanour trespassing when he was found on the property for the second time over the Christmas holidays, TMZ reported. It is not known whether the Sussexes were at home at the time.