It’s been 27 years since a doe-eyed Princess Diana sat down with Martin Bashir to make a host of shocking confessions and claims during her infamous Panorama interview, which is now set to be the topic of conversation again as it features in two episodes of the new series of The Crown. Despite Diana’s sons Princes William and Harry condemning the interview, Netflix spent a reported £1million on recreating it and it plays a pivotal part in series five of the royal drama.
What did Diana say in her Panorama interview?
The interview originally aired on BBC One on 20 November 1995, after Bashir had convinced Diana to tell her side of the story, following her estranged husband’s interview with Jonathan Dimbleby, in which he admitted to being unfaithful. It attracted a UK audience of nearly 23 million, and during it, Diana also confessed to adultery, claimed that there had always been ‘three of us’ in her marriage in a reference to Charles relationship with Camilla Parker Bowles, question Charles’ ability to be king and threatened that she ‘would not go quietly’. At the time, many royal experts said the TV tell-all could threaten the future of the monarchy and soon after, The Queen ordered Charles and Diana to divorce, three years after separating.
What happened to Martin Bashir?
The fallout was huge, with William and Harry said to be upset with Bashir for asking their mum such intrusive questions, Charles angry at her suggestions about him and sources close to the princess at the time said she regretted some parts of it. However, it was life-changing for Bashir as it was hailed as the scoop of a generation and he and his producer won a BAFTA for it in 1996, before Bashir went on to become one of the most recognisable and in-demand interviewers in the world. He conducted interviews with Louise Woodward, the English nanny convicted of manslaughter in the US, Michael Barrymore, Jeffrey Archer, George Best and the five suspects in the Stephen Lawrence murder case.
But it was his 2003 documentary, Living with Michael Jackson, which catapulted him to infamy again. He followed Jackson around for eight months and he took Bashir on a tour of his Neverland home, discussed his kids, family, plastic surgery, his unhappy childhood and his relationship with other children. Following the controversy raised from the documentary, Jackson was charged with seven counts of child molestation and two counts of intoxicating a minor with alcohol, all of which he was acquitted of.
After Jackson's death in 2009, Dieter Wiesner, the pop star's manager from 1996 to 2003, said of Jackson's response to Bashir's documentary, ‘It broke him. It killed him. He took a long time to die, but it started that night. Previously the drugs were a crutch, but after that they became a necessity.’
Bashir later defended Jackson, saying, ‘whilst his lifestyle may have been a bit unorthodox, I don't believe it was criminal and I think the world has now lost the greatest entertainer it's probably ever known.’
In 2019, Bashir – who has three children with his wife Deborah - took part in Celebrity X Factor and he also released a reggae album in 2010.
What was the Panorama interview so controversial?
But in November 2020, interest in his interview with Diana renewed as all the other non-BBC terrestrial channels aired documentaries to coincide with its 25th anniversary. Following on from the shows, which had many allegations against Bashir and how he got Diana to agree to the interview, BBC Director-General Tim Davie later apologised to Earl Spencer, the brother of the princess, because Bashir had used forged bank statements to win his and Diana's trust to secure the interview, as well as making up stories. Former Justice of the Supreme Court Lord Dyson conducted an independent inquiry into the issue. Dyson's inquiry found Bashir guilty of deceit and of breaching BBC editorial conduct to obtain the interview. Although the Metropolitan Police announced that they would not be launching a criminal investigation into the interview, the BAFTA it had won had to be handed back.
What did Prince William say about Bashir's interview with Princess Diana?
Prince William – who has begged that the interview or any scenes from it are never shown again – said in a statement after Lord Dyson’s ruling, ‘It is welcome that the BBC accepts Lord Dyson's findings in full – which are extremely concerning – that BBC employees: lied and used fake documents to obtain the interview with my mother; made lurid and false claims about the Royal Family which played on her fears and fuelled paranoia; displayed woeful incompetence when investigating complaints and concerns about the programme; and were evasive in their reporting to the media and covered up what they knew from their internal investigation.'
He added: 'It is my view that the deceitful way the interview was obtained substantially influenced what my mother said. This Panorama 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.'
What did Prince Harry say about Bashir's interview with Princess Diana?
Harry also released his own statement, saying, ‘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. To those who have taken some form of accountability, thank you for owning it. That is the first step towards justice and truth. Yet what deeply concerns me is that practices like these—and even worse—are still widespread today. Then, and now, it’s bigger than one outlet, one network, or one publication. Our mother lost her life because of this, and nothing has changed. By protecting her legacy, we protect everyone, and uphold the dignity with which she lived her life. Let’s remember who she was and what she stood for.’