Grant Harrold says “the King certainly didn't want Diana forgotten, I saw that firsthand”
Grant HarroldFormer royal butler to King Charles at Highgrove House (2004-2011), speaking on the podcast The Royals Uncensored
On the podcast The Royals Uncensored, Grant Harrold, who worked as a royal butler for Charles at Highgrove from 2004 to 2011, said "the King certainly didn't want Diana forgotten," and that he saw that "firsthand." He said it is "completely possible that maybe it was an exchange of some kind," but that from his own experience in the period after Diana's death, he believed Charles still had feelings for her, citing that Charles continued to wear her wedding ring until his remarriage and kept other personal items connected to her.
“The King certainly didn't want Diana forgotten, I saw that firsthand! This is a nuclear strike at the heart of the monarchy. This is extraordinary, what's come out. I was quite shocked. Look, it's completely possible that maybe it was an exchange of some kind, but I was around, especially in those days after Princess Diana had obviously died... and from my experience - and this is me being very honest and open with everyone here - he still, I believe, had feelings for [her], I think he still cared for her. He still wore her wedding ring as far as I could see, and that obviously was removed, obviously, after his next wedding. And there were other things around that very much meant she was still part of their lives. Now, why would you still want those memories? Why would you keep those things, those personal things around, if you were telling the word that, she'll be forgotten?”
Reporting
Where this statement fits
Earl Spencer's memoir claims about King Charles's reaction to Diana's death
In his memoir "Swan Song: Diana, My Sister," serialised from September 2026, Charles Spencer makes a series of claims about how the then Prince Charles behaved towards him after Diana's death in 1997. He writes that Charles told him by phone, "Rest assured, we'll forget her soon enough," and, in later excerpts, that Charles sounded "giddily elated – like a lottery winner" during the call and that he now suspects Charles was weighing how the death might free him to marry Camilla. Buckingham Palace, in a rare on-record statement, did not directly confirm or deny the quotation, saying instead that "the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and colour memory," and declined to respond again to the later claims. The dispute is whether Spencer's account of Charles's words and demeanour is accurate.
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
The Express's report of remarks Grant Harrold made on The Royals Uncensored podcast (with co-hosts Katie Nicholl and Jo Elvin) on September 17, 2026. It identifies Harrold as a former royal butler who worked for Charles at Highgrove between 2004 and 2011.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
Harrold spoke with co-hosts Katie Nicholl and Jo Elvin the day after the Daily Mail began serializing Spencer's memoir and Buckingham Palace issued its initial statement.
After the quotation
Harrold did not say he witnessed the phone call Spencer describes; his account is based on his general experience working for Charles in the period afterward.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
On whether Spencer's account of Charles's words and demeanour after Diana's death is accurate, Harrold does not flatly deny the exchange occurred — he calls it "completely possible" — so this is not a denial like Arbiter's. Instead he disputes the characterization that Charles was indifferent to Diana or wanted her forgotten, offering his own firsthand observations (the wedding ring, kept personal items) as counter-evidence. The closest competing label is condemns, which this case uses for accounts that support Charles's side; it loses here because Harrold does not reject Spencer's account of the words as false, only the broader characterization of Charles's feelings that the account implies.
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- People and groups discussed
- Charles Spencer
Corrections to this statement
These notices document reporting corrections, classification changes, and topic-label updates.
Reporting correction
Correction to: Statement by Grant Harrold
- Previous language
- Harrold spoke with co-hosts Katie Nicholl and Jo Elvin two days after the Daily Mail began serializing Spencer's memoir and the day after Buckingham Palace's initial statement. Harrold did not say he witnessed the January 1997 phone call itself; his account is based on his general experience working for Charles in the period afterward.
- Corrected language
- Harrold spoke with co-hosts Katie Nicholl and Jo Elvin the day after the Daily Mail began serializing Spencer's memoir and Buckingham Palace issued its initial statement. Harrold did not say he witnessed the phone call Spencer describes; his account is based on his general experience working for Charles in the period afterward.
We said Grant Harrold spoke two days after the Daily Mail began serializing Charles Spencer's memoir. The first excerpt appeared on September 16 and Harrold spoke on September 17, one day later. We also dated the phone call Spencer describes to January 1997. Spencer places it in the days after Diana's death on August 31, 1997. We corrected both lines. The quoted words, the date of the statement and the classification are unchanged.
This corrects our account of what happened.
The Express's report of remarks Grant Harrold made on The Royals Uncensored podcast (with co-hosts Katie Nicholl and Jo Elvin) on September 17, 2026. It identifies Harrold as a former royal butler who worked for Charles at Highgrove between 2004 and 2011.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)More from this case
Read the full caseSpencer denies trying to discredit Charles
“At no point am I looking to discredit anyone.”Read statement
Spencer tells CBS he is “absolutely not bitter” and that his book “would be more bitter” if he were
“No, I'm absolutely not bitter. I can tell you, if I was bitter, this book would be more bitter.”Read statement
Spencer tells CBS he is “reporting that’s the fact,” not “justifying or criticizing”
“He sounded excited in a sort of upbeat way. … Yes, and obviously I'm not justifying or criticizing. I'm reporting that's the fact. … I said in the book that that might have been it, yeah, but that's obviously … I can't say what he was thinking”Read statement
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The Dispute Index. "Grant Harrold says “the King certainly didn't want Diana forgotten, I saw that firsthand”". First published: 2026-09-22. Last updated: 2026-09-26. https://disputeindex.com/events/1425-on-the-podcast-the-royals-uncensored-grant-harrold