Prince William’s fury as Netflix accused of profiteering by re-enacting Diana’s Panorama interview
Prince William’s fury as Netflix is accused of profiteering by re-enacting his mother Diana’s BBC Panorama interview with Martin Bashir in new series of The Crown – despite his pleas for it never to be aired on TV again
- The streaming giant will recreate excerpts of her 1995 encounter with Bashir
- An independent inquiry found that Bashir deceived Diana to get the interview
- Prince William has previously been an outspoken critic of interview being aired
Prince William thinks Netflix is profiteering by re-enacting his mother Diana’s BBC Panorama interview, palace sources have said.
The streaming giant will recreate excerpts of Diana’s 1995 encounter with journalist Martin Bashir for the fifth series of The Crown.
A source told The Telegraph that the Prince of Wales made his feelings ‘very clear’ and a depiction in the show would be ‘met in the way you would expect’.
They added it was understandable that he was angered about the ‘dramatisation of it for financial gain’.
An independent inquiry found that Bashir deceived Diana to get the interview, seen by more than 20 million viewers, and then lied to BBC managers.
He got a BBC graphic artist to produce fake bank statements that appeared to show payments by a newspaper group to an ex-member of staff of Earl Spencer, Diana’s brother.
The inquiry said this was to gain the Earl’s confidence so he would introduce Bashir to Diana.
Prince William thinks Netflix is profiteering by re-enacting his mother Diana’s BBC Panorama interview, palace sources have said
The streaming giant will recreate excerpts of Diana’s 1995 encounter with journalist Martin Bashir for the fifth series of The Crown
Prince William has previously been an outspoken critic of the interview being aired by broadcasters
It is thought the interview contributed to her divorce from Prince Charles in 1996 – a year prior to her fatal car crash in the Tunnel de l’Alma in Paris.
Series 5 of The Crown opens in 1991, and a key plotline is the deteriorating relationship between Charles, played by Dominic West, and Diana, portrayed by The Night Manager’s Elizabeth Debicki.
It is understood that Netflix, which has cast Prasanna Puwanarajah in the role of Bashir, will show how the discredited reporter persuaded Diana to give the interview by playing on her paranoia.
But to tell the story, it will recreate what an insider called ‘snippets’ from Diana’s Panorama appearance.
However, any reference to the interview, even if critical of Bashir, is likely to be greeted with dismay in Buckingham Palace.
Prince William has previously been an outspoken critic of the interview being aired by broadcasters.
In May last year, he said: ‘It is my firm view that this programme holds no legitimacy and should never be aired again.
‘It effectively established a false narrative which, for over a quarter of a century, has been commercialised by the BBC and others.’
Series 5 of The Crown opens in 1991, and a key plotline is the deteriorating relationship between Charles, played by Dominic West, and Diana, portrayed by The Night Manager’s Elizabeth Debicki
A spokesman for The Crown insisted the interview was of ‘historical significance’
He added that he was ‘most saddened’ Diana never learned she had been deceived.
He said his mother was failed ‘not just by a rogue reporter’ but by BBC bosses.
A spokesman for The Crown insisted the interview was of ‘historical significance’.
It was previously reported that the new series will show King Charles’s crumbling marriage to Princess Diana in ‘painful’ detail.
The breakdown of Charles and Diana’s relationship will be a central part of the new series and portrays the then Prince of Wales as ‘petty, cold and deceitful’.
The fourth series, which streamed in November last year, told the story of the early romance between Charles and Diana.
It was announced last year that Elizabeth Debicki would take over from Emma Corrin and play Diana for the fifth and sixth series, which will cover Diana’s death in 1997.
A source told The Sun: ‘This couldn’t have come at a more delicate time for the new King and his Queen Consort, particularly as they’re riding high in the minds of the public.
The new series of Netflix’s The Crown will show King Charles’s crumbling marriage to Princess Diana in ‘painful’ detail. Pictured: Dominic West as Prince Charles and Elizabeth Debicki as Princess Diana
The breakdown of Charles and Diana’s relationship will be a central part of the new series and portrays the then Prince of Wales as ‘petty, cold and deceitful’. Pictured: A family holiday taken by the royals a year prior to Charles and Diana’s divorce in 1992 in which they enjoyed a trip aboard the 400ft yacht Alexander
The fourth series, which streamed in November last year, told the story of the early romance between Charles and Diana. Pictured: King Charles III attends the state funeral of the Queen
‘There’s a sense that Netflix are muckraking over events that took place 30 to 40 years ago, but are still raw for those involved.
‘The worst element for the royals is that millions of people around the world will view this series and view it less as a drama and more as a documentary.
‘And attention on the Windsors couldn’t be higher as it’s been just a few weeks since Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral and is in the run-up to the King’s coronation.’
The fifth series will span the 1990s, including events from 1992, the late monarch’s annus horribilis – horrible year – during which Prince Andrew and Prince Charles separated from their wives, the Princess Royal divorced her husband Mark Phillips, and part of Windsor Castle burnt down.
It will begin with Sir John Major as Prime Minister and conclude with the arrival of Tony Blair.
During this time, Prince Charles admitted to Jonathan Dimbleby that he committed adultery with the then Camilla Parker Bowles.
Princess Diana’s death – which took place in 1997 – will not be covered until the sixth and final series.