UK: Earl Spencer to Amend Diana Biography After Legal Threat from Piers Morgan

London — Earl Spencer, brother of the late Princess Diana, will amend his new memoir Swan Song: Diana, My Sister after broadcaster Piers Morgan threatened legal action over a factual error in the book.
Released on September 22, an excerpt from the biography implied that a former Daily Mirror editor was responsible for publishing secretly-taken gym photos of Princess Diana in a leotard, printed by the Sunday Mirror in 1993. Morgan pointed out he was working at The Sun at the time and did not join the Daily Mirror until 1995. He also objected to being called “surly” over a phone call in which Spencer had asked him not to attend Diana’s funeral.
Morgan initially demanded that Spencer destroy remaining copies of the book and instructed lawyers to seek a halt to sales. Spencer later apologised, saying accuracy mattered to him as a historian, and acknowledged his assumption about Morgan’s role was wrong — though he stood by describing Morgan as “surly and angry” during the funeral-related call.
The Times later reported that future editions of the book will be corrected. Despite the apology, Morgan told BBC Radio 4’s PM programme he still intends to pursue legal action, instructing lawyers to send letters to both Spencer and publisher Penguin. He is demanding the false claim be removed and damages paid to The King’s Trust.
The memoir has already stirred wider controversy over its sensational claim that King Charles told Spencer, shortly after Diana’s 1997 death in Paris, “We’ll soon forget her.” Buckingham Palace said it does not comment on books, but noted that grief “can cloud judgement… and blur memory.”