November 05, 2020
Princess Diana might have been manipulated to participate in the bombshell Panorama interview conducted by Martin Bashir 25 years ago and BBC is going to probe the same.
According to reports, Bashir had forged bank documents in order to pressure Diana to admit one of her most tragic utterances regarding her marriage to Prince Charles: “There were three of us in this marriage.”
As reported by Deadline, Diana was pressurised into making the bombshell statement by showing her forged bank documents and other unethical methods that were used to convince her to sit through the controversial chat.
Last weekend, BBC even apologised to the late Princess's brother, Charles Spencer, after he produced evidence that Bashir used bank statements doctored by a staff graphic designer.
“Suggesting that mocked-up documents were genuine was wrong then and it’s wrong now; the BBC of today is happy to apologize for this. The BBC’s editorial processes are now even tougher and this would not happen today,” said a statement from a BBC spokesperson sent to The Post. “The BBC’s records say that the Princess of Wales said she hadn’t seen the mocked-up documents and they had played no part in her decision to take part in the interview.”
Spencer had alleged that Bashir told his sister “fantastical stories to win her trust” and showed him fake bank records that reportedly helped land him the interview.
Now, a proper and thorough investigation has been promised by the publication to Diana's brother, although going through it might be difficult as Bashir is currently gravely ill amid COVID-19 battle.