Earl Spencer's stolen Diana manuscript
Four copies of the Dutch-language edition of Earl Spencer's unreleased memoir about his sister, Diana, Princess of Wales -- titled 'Swan Song: Diana, My Sister' and due for UK and global release the following Tuesday -- were stolen from a truck in the Dutch countryside while its driver took a mandatory break, Dutch publisher Overamstel's distribution truck reportedly targeted en route from the printer to the warehouse. Dutch police confirmed they were investigating but did not disclose the theft's location; the Daily Mail, which is serialising the book, first reported the theft. Spencer had said he wrote the book -- ahead of the 30th anniversary of Diana's 1997 death -- to 'tell the truth about Diana from her brother's perspective,' echoing the eulogy he delivered at her funeral in Westminster Abbey, in which he called her the 'very essence of compassion, of duty, of style, of beauty' and criticised the media for hounding her.
Follow this story on the globe
As it ran
16 September 2026
- Earl Spencer's unreleased book on sister Diana stolen in the Netherlands BBC News
- Earl Spencer's unreleased book on Diana stolen in the Netherlands BBC News
- Charles said Diana would be forgotten 'soon enough', Earl Spencer claims in book BBC News
- 'Grief can colour memory': Palace responds after Earl Spencer's claim in Diana book BBC News
- Princess Diana’s brother claims Charles said she would be forgotten ‘soon enough’ just days after her death CNN
- King Charles responds to claims about Princess Diana in rare statement Fox News
- In rare move, King Charles responds to criticism from Princess Diana’s brother South China Morning Post