'A bit chubby': Memoir claims King Charles fat-shamed Diana; was 'giddily elated' by her death

Earl Spencer, brother of Diana, Princess of Wales, is set to release a memoir that makes a series of deeply personal claims about his sister’s relationship with King Charles, alleging that the then-Prince Charles sounded “giddily elated — like a lottery winner” when he called after Diana’s death in 1997 and that he once told her, shortly after their engagement, “Oh, a bit chubby here, aren’t we?”The allegations appear in Spencer’s forthcoming memoir titled ‘Swan Song: Diana, My Sister’, which is being serialised ahead of its publication.

The book draws on Spencer’s recollections of his sister’s life, marriage and death nearly three decades ago.Buckingham Palace has already issued an unusually strong response to the book’s claims. While saying it does not comment on books as a matter of principle, a Palace spokesperson said King Charles was mindful that “the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and colour memory” even many years after a loss.

‘Like a lottery winner’ after Diana’s death

Spencer writes that he was at his home in Cape Town with his children when he learnt that Diana had been killed in a car crash in Paris on August 31, 1997.After a series of calls confirming her death, Charles called Spencer, according to the memoir.Spencer claims that while other callers were stunned and struggled to express their condolences, Charles “sounded giddily elated — like a lottery winner”.He says Charles told him he had informed William and Harry of their mother’s death in their bedrooms at Balmoral.

Spencer describes the conversation as “strangely matter-of-fact” given the circumstances.Looking back, Spencer says he suspects Charles may have been thinking about how Diana’s death could free him to marry the woman he loved, an interpretation that forms part of Spencer’s own recollection of the conversation.

Charles fat-shames Diana

Another claim concerns Diana’s weight and eating disorder in the months before her wedding.Spencer writes that Diana was already struggling with an eating disorder when Charles allegedly squeezed her waist shortly after their engagement and remarked: “Oh, a bit chubby here, aren’t we?”He says the comment devastated Diana. According to Spencer, she later told him that her waist shrank from 29 inches to 23½ inches between her engagement and wedding.Spencer also claims that Diana had told a friend that Charles had confided to her on the eve of their wedding that he was happy to marry her but was not actually in love with her.

‘We’ll forget her soon enough’

Spencer recounts another alleged conversation with Charles during preparations for Diana’s funeral.He says he objected to William and Harry walking behind their mother’s coffin and subsequently received a call from Charles. Spencer describes Charles as becoming angry during the exchange.He claims that Charles eventually told him: “Rest assured, we’ll forget her soon enough!”Spencer writes that he was so shocked by the remark that he told Charles he could not believe he had said it before ending the call.The Palace’s response came after this earlier extract was published. It did not directly address the individual allegations but questioned the reliability of memories shaped by grief decades after Diana’s death.The memoir also contains claims about Diana’s funeral arrangements, her decision to divorce Charles, her relationship with the royal household and her experiences during the breakdown of her marriage. Spencer says the book is intended, in part, to challenge what he considers “untruths” that emerged after his sister’s death.