Prince William 'did everything he could' to block Princess Diana documentary from airing crash photos
Diana died in August 1997 following a car crash in ParisPrince William reportedly “did everything he could” to prevent a documentary from airing photos of the car crash that resulted in her tragic death.
This year will mark the 28th anniversary of Princess Diana‘s death. Today (Tuesday, July 1) would have been her 64th birthday.
18 years ago, Channel 4 broadcast a documentary about Diana’s death, which included harrowing photos of the crash that killed her.
A book by a royal author has since claimed that Prince William tried “everything he could” to prevent those pictures being broadcast.
Channel 4’s controversial Princess Diana documentary featuring crash photos
In 2007, Channel 4 broadcast a documentary called Diana: The Witnesses in the Tunnel. It looked at the princess’ tragic death.
Diana died after being involved in a car crash in Paris on August 31, 1997.
The documentary made headlines by broadcasting photographs of the crash. One particularly controversial image showed Diana still in the car with her face blurred out.
We would like to make clear that it was not our intention in commissioning this programme to cause them distress.
At the time, Clarence House said Princes William and Harry believed the use of the pictures was a “gross disrespect” of her memory. A royal aide for the brothers thought showing them would cause William and Harry”acute distress”.
In a statement at the time, the then-head of Channel 4 said: “We would like to make clear that it was not our intention in commissioning this programme to cause them distress and we do not believe the film is in any way disrespectful to the memory of Princess Diana.”
He added that he believed there was “legitimate public interest” in the documentary.
Prince William’s attempt to block crash photos in Princess Diana documentary
In her 2022 book, The Palace Papers, royal author Tina Brown claimed that, unsurprisingly, the royal family was opposed to the pictures being shown in the documentary.
The family was reportedly concerned about the impact it would have on Harry and William. The princes were in their 20s at the time.
Brown also claimed that William “did everything he could” to prevent the pictures from being broadcast.
“William asked his private secretary, Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton – without success – to do everything he could [to prevent the pictures from being shown],” Brown wrote.
Lowther-Pinkerton even wrote to Channel 4 saying that should the pictures be broadcast, it would cause “the princes acute distress if they are shown to a public audience, not just for themselves, but also on their mother’s behalf, in the sense of intruding upon the privacy and dignity of her last minutes”.
Ultimately, William and his private secretary’s attempts were in vain. The documentary received 62 Ofcom complaints.
Royal Insider has contacted Kensington Palace for comment.
Prince Harry on what could have saved Diana’s life
Prince Harry has spoken about his mother a lot over the years, including in his 2023 book, Spare. In the book, he speculated on what could have prevented her death.
In the autobiography, Harry opened up about the bond his grandfather, Prince Philip, had with the late Princess of Wales.
Recalling fond memories of his late grandfather, he wrote: “I thought of Grandpa’s strong opinions, his many passions – carriage driving, barbecuing, shooting, food, beer. The way he embraced life.
“He had that in common with my mother. Maybe that was why he’d been such a fan. Long before she was Princess Diana, back when she was simply Diana Spencer, kindergarten teacher, secret girlfriend of Prince Charles, my grandfather was her loudest advocate.”
Meanwhile, he added: “But for him, I wouldn’t be here. Neither would my older brother. Then again, maybe our mother would be here. If she hadn’t married Pa…”
Harry was, of course, referring to the fact that the press frenzy and paparazzi wouldn’t have happened to her at all if she hadn’t married into the royal family.
Read more: Conspiracy theories about Princess Diana’s death that people still believe decades later
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