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Princess Diana’s famous BBC Panorama interview was explosive, and many members of the Royal Family felt the impact.
The late Princess of Wales’s landmark television appearance with Martin Bashir aired on November 20, 1995 and 20 million tuned in as she made the well-known comment, ‘there were three of us in the marriage, so it was a bit crowded’.
Sitting opposite Bashir in Kensington Palace, Diana went on to question the now King’s suitability for the throne, and opened up about her mental health struggles and extramarital affairs.
It came after Charles’s own interview where, in 1994, he too admitted his infidelity with Camilla Parker-Bowles.
Less than a month after Diana’s controversial comments, the couple filed for divorce, which was finalised two years later.
Diana’s relationship with other royals also soured and, despite once being supportive, Princess Margaret felt the interview was a ‘betrayal’, Andrew Morton wrote in his 2021 book Elizabeth & Margaret.
‘Margaret experienced a deep sense of hurt and betrayal as she watched Diana’s historic interview,’ the journalist and author writes.
Queen Elizabeth’s younger sister had attempted to help Diana assimilate in to royal life by taking her under her wing and thought of her as a friend.
Princess Margaret considered Princess Diana a friend. Here they are seen together in 1989
The late Princess of Wales during her interview with BBC’s Martin Bashir back in 1995
‘Princess Margaret told her what would happen wherever they went, and what to do, whose hand she would have to shake and what to say – it was a bit like Eliza Doolittle except, of course, Diana was already posh,’ Margaret’s chauffeur David Griffin previously said.
She even persuaded the Queen to ‘indulge’ Diana’s ‘whims and caprices’ on occasion, Mr Morton writes.
So when Diana’s interview was broadcasted, Margaret saw it as a move against the monarchy.
She responded by throwing away magazines that featured Diana on the front cover, and ensured her children didn’t continue any relationship with her.
‘Not only did she cut off all contact with the princess, she also made it clear to her children that she did not want them fraternising with the enemy,’ Mr Morton writes in his book.
Margaret’s daughter, Lady Sarah Chatto, reportedly had a close bond with the Princess of Wales and the pair were only three years apart in age. She was also the chief bridesmaid at Diana and Charles’s wedding in 1981.
Despite this, when Sarah had her first child in 1996, Diana was so cut off from her that she asked David Griffin to pass a gift on, Mr Morton was informed.
Margaret disagreed strongly with Diana’s television appearance and wrote her a scathing letter afterwards expressing her feelings.
A confident Princess Margaret shows a shy Diana the ropes while attending a banquet at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London in 1990
Just a month before her marriage to Prince Charles, the then Lady Diana attended the London film premiere of For Your Eyes Only with her husband-to-be and Princess Margaret, with both women channelling burnt orange coloured gowns
Princess Margaret is a reassuring presence behind Princess Diana, who is holding three-year-old Prince Harry, on the balcony at Buckingham Palace in 1988
The reaction devastated Diana, who had looked up to Margaret and appreciated her kindness when she first joined the family.
Mr Morton previously wrote in Diana, Her True Story: In Her Own Words, how the Princess told him: ‘I’ve always adored Margo. I love her to bits and she has been wonderful to me from day one.’
Margaret could relate to Diana’s difficulties with the Royal Family somewhat and the media.
‘With her unpredictability and panache, Margaret had been the Diana of her day and knew what it was like to be the medias chew toy,’ Tina Brown, former Vanity Fair editor and royal chronicler, writes in her bestselling book The Palace Papers: Inside The House Of Windsor.
Diana’s relationship with the Queen Mother was different and ‘much less cordial,’ Mr Morton shared in his book.
The Princess avoided the Queen Mother by keeping ‘a distrustful distance’, finding social situations difficult and formal with her, he wrote.
Twenty-five years after Diana’s interview first aired, it emerged that Martin Bashir had secured his interview with the princess by falsifying documents.
In 2021, an independent investigation by former senior judge Lord Dyson revealed the misconduct of reporter Martin Bashir and the BBC’s lack of transparency surrounding the Panorama interview with Princess Diana, and raised questions about the manner in which interview was secured.
The inquiry found that ‘Bashir seriously breached BBC rules by mocking up fake bank statements to gain access to the princess’ (these suggested a staff member of Charles Spencer, Diana’s brother, had been leaking information to the press and were used to induce the earl to arrange a meeting with his sister) among other issues.
It was also alleged that Diana was shown a ‘faked abortion receipt’ which suggested Charles had been romantically involved with one of the royal nannies.
Bashir admitted at the time to having the documents forged but denied ever showing them to anybody.
The two princesses shared a rebellious streak and a flair for fashion, both setting trends in their own right, pictured together with Charles in 1982
Initially, Princess Margaret and Diana got along well, Margaret seeing the young woman as a breath of fresh air in a stuffy Royal Family
Margaret was protective of Diana as she adjusted to royal life, but the Princess of Wales kept ‘a distrustful distance’ from the Queen Mother (pictured on her 92nd birthday in 1992), finding social situations difficult and formal with her
The report slammed BBC bosses, including former director-general Tony Hall, for covering up information on how Bashir was able to secure the interview.
After the findings were released, it prompted Prince William to make an unprecedented statement saying the interview should never be aired again after it had created a ‘false narrative for over a quarter of a century’.
‘Our mother was an incredible woman who dedicated her life to service. She was resilient, brave, and unquestionably honest,’ Prince Harry added. ‘The ripple effect of a culture of exploitation and unethical practices ultimately took her life.’
Both brothers received ‘unconditional apology’ letters from the BBC over Bashir’s conduct and the 25-year cover up.
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