Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Netflix documentary includes a clip from the infamous BBC “Panorama” interview that Prince William said should never air again.
The two brothers appeared united on that front just 18 months ago, when both spoke out about the interview — which a BBC inquiry determined had been secured through deception — and argued that it may have contributed to the late Princess Diana’s untimely death.
Blaming Martin Bashir for tricking their mother into doing the interview and the BBC for airing it, both men agreed that it had ultimately helped to foster her growing sense of “fear, paranoia and isolation.” Her comment about King Charles’ affair with Camilla Parker Bowles — “There were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded” — led the late Queen Elizabeth II to encourage a divorce, which stripped Diana of both her title and the royals’ security that accompanied it.
“It is my view that the deceitful way the interview was obtained substantially influenced what my mother said. The interview was a major contribution to making my parents’ relationship worse and has since hurt countless others,” William said of the interview. “It is my firm view that this ‘Panorama’ program 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 commercialized by the BBC and others.”
Prince Harry added, “Our mother was an incredible woman who dedicated her life to service. She was resilient, brave, and unquestionably honest. The ripple effect of a culture of exploitation and unethical practices ultimately took her life.”
Despite all that, however, Harry opted to include the interview in his Netflix docuseries — in a segment addressing the media fascination with the royals and all who fall within their orbit.
“I think she had a lived experience of how she was struggling living that life. She felt compelled to talk about it,” Harry explained in the series. He then pivoted to the infamous interview, adding, “Especially that ‘Panorama’ interview. I think we all now know she was deceived into giving the interview, but at the same time she spoke the truth of her experience.”