Martin Bashir, a BBC News religion editor who famously conducted an explosive interview with Princess Diana in 1995, is on the defensive following an investigation that found the broadcaster violated ethics guidelines to gain access to the princess, the Associated Press reported.
The BBC appointed a retired senior judge to reopen the matter in November following renewed allegations by Charles Spencer, Diana's brother, who said Bashir used false documents and other dishonest practices to persuade Diana to agree to the interview. Bashir left the BBC last week due to his ongoing complications from COVID-19.
According to Spencer, Bashir used forged bank documents relating to Diana's former private secretary and another former royal household member that showed people were being paid to monitor the princess.
Spencer also said Bashir created false stories about the royal family to further convince Diana that there was a conspiracy against her.
Bashir responded by saying that falsifying the bank statements was a "stupid thing to do" and expressed regret. He added that he did not believe it influenced Diana, saying his actions had "no bearing whatsoever on the personal choice by Princess Diana to take part in the interview."
For more reporting from the Associated Press, see below.
Diana famously said in the interview that "there were three of us in this marriage"—referring to Prince Charles' relationship with Camilla Parker-Bowles. Her candid account of her failing marriage with Charles was watched by millions of people and sent shockwaves through the monarchy.
The investigation criticized the BBC for falling short during its own probe into the matter two decades ago of the "high standards of integrity and transparency which are its hallmark."
The BBC's chairman, Richard Sharp, said the corporation accepts the investigation's findings, adding "there were unacceptable failures."
John Birt, director-general of the BBC at the time of the interview, which was aired on the Panorama news program, apologized to Charles Spencer in a statement.
"We now know that the BBC harbored a rogue reporter on Panorama who fabricated an elaborate, detailed but wholly false account of his dealings with Earl Spencer and Princess Diana," he said. "This is a shocking blot on the BBC's enduring commitment to honest journalism; and it is a matter of the greatest regret that it has taken 25 years for the full truth to emerge."
Diana divorced Charles in 1996 and died in a Paris car crash in 1997 as she was pursued by paparazzi. Charles married Camilla, now the Duchess of Cornwall, in 2005.
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