Martin Bashir’s infamous 1995 sit-down with Princess Diana stemmed from forged bank documents and other “deceitful methods,” an independent investigation reported Thursday.
The six-month inquiry, conducted by Lord Dyson and commissioned by the BBC, found that Bashir, then a relatively unknown journalist, broke BBC’s editorial standards in order to secure the interview, during which Diana famously said there were “three of us” in her marriage to Prince Charles, referring to his ex-girlfriend and future wife, Camilla Parker Bowles.
After the interview, Queen Elizabeth personally advised Diana and Charles to get divorced. Two years later, Diana died in a car crash.
The BBC said the report showed “clear failings” in Bashir’s process, which “fell short of the high standards of integrity and transparency which are its hallmark.”
“Although the report states that Diana, Princess of Wales, was keen on the idea of an interview with the BBC, it is clear that the process for securing the interview fell far short of what audiences have a right to expect. We are very sorry for this,” BBC’s director general, Tim Davie, said in a statement.
“While today’s BBC has significantly better processes and procedures, those that existed at the time should have prevented the interview being secured in this way.”
Bashir resigned from the BBC last week, ahead of the report’s release, citing health reasons.
Despite apologizing, Bashir said he was “immensely proud” of his interview.
“The bank statements had no bearing whatsoever on the personal choice by Princess Diana to take part in the interview,” he said in a statement.
Hours before the report was published, Diana’s brother, Charles, shared a photo of the siblings as young children.
“Some bonds go back a very long way,” he tweeted.
Charles Spencer went public last year with accusations that Bashir had faked the bank statements, which he claimed proved that the media was paying family friends for gossip. Spencer introduced Bashir to Diana after seeing the bank statements.
Almost 23 million people tuned into the interview in 1995 as Diana shared some of her darkest secrets.
“While the BBC cannot turn back the clock after a quarter of a century,” Davie said, “we can make a full and unconditional apology. The BBC offers that today.”
