Earl Spencer has come under fire after he made several claims in his book Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, which was released on Tuesday. Piers Morgan is threatening to sue
Piers Morgan has claimed that Earl Spencer has “apologised to me for his defamatory lies” published in his Diana book, but the broadcaster says he will still be suing and giving the money to the King’s Trust.
Taking to X for his announcement, Morgan wrote: “Earl Spencer has apologised to me for his defamatory lies published in his new book, Swan Song, published today. But I am pursuing legal action against him and his publisher Penguin to have the lies removed, and damages paid to the King’s Trust.”
Morgan announced on Monday evening that he would be taking legal action against the Earl and his publishers over “demonstrable lies he has written about me in his new book”.
Diana’s brother claimed in his new book that Piers Morgan reportedly “snarled with annoyance” when he was informed he was no longer invited to attend Princess Diana’s funeral.
Morgan, the former Daily Mirror editor and broadcaster, was among a host of journalists to receive invitations despite her family blaming the press and paparazzi for contributing to her fatal car crash in 1997.
Diana’s brother wrote that he was left “flabbergasted” after being informed “all the Fleet Street editors always get invited” to royal services. He decided to ring each tabloid newspaper editor to request that they refrain from attending.
In his new bombshell memoir Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, the 62-year-old Earl said the majority of editors were “slightly confused” and agreed not to attend the Westminster Abbey service.
He said: “The only one who sounded surly, as opposed to merely confused or embarrassed, was Piers Morgan of the Mirror, who snarled with annoyance before he hung up.”
The book also claimed how Tony Blair’s press secretary Alastair Campbell had noted the day before the funeral that Mr Morgan had “called and asked me to do all that I could to stop Charles Spencer attacking the press”.
He added Diana wanted to placate her “chief tormentors” by meeting with them, including forging relationships with certain journalists and editors.
The Earl said: “Diana decided to show those who were writing such devastating things about her that she was human, and that she had feelings that could be desperately hurt.
“Once, when I told her I had a particularly testing event coming up in my diary, she replied: ‘Count yourself lucky – that’s the same day that I’ve got to have lunch with Piers Morgan…”
The book includes many other claims, including that King Charles said “we’ll forget her soon enough” after Diana’s death.
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