Bookshops across London were quiet on the release day of Earl Spencer’s memoir about his late sister Diana, Princess of Wales, today.
Copies of the new book, ‘Swan Song: Diana, My Sister’, have already been marked down to half price in London.
went to Waterstones in Kensington and found the £28 hardcover books had been marked with a ‘half price’ red sticker just hours after the book’s release.
The book is also marked as half price online.
Copies are lining the windows of bookstores across the city, including in Waterstones Piccadilly – which is the largest in Europe.
The book marks the first time that Earl Spencer, 62, has spoken at length about his sibling, three decades after her death.
Last week, Earl Spencer revealed in his new book that just days after Diana died in 1997, Charles allegedly told him: ‘Rest assured, we’ll forget her soon enough.’
The palace has pushed back on the claims, issuing a statement reading: ‘While we do not comment on books as a matter of principle, His Majesty is mindful that the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and colour memory in ways others do not recognise, even many years after such a loss.’
Other passages of the book contain damning allegations about King Charles’ behaviour before and after his former wife’s death.
Next year marks the 30th anniversary of Princess Diana’s death, and royal expert Duncan Larcombe told that Earl Spencer’s allegations have marked a ‘cataclysmic’ start to the milestone.
‘This moment is the calm before the storm,’ he added.
‘Diana was the biggest threat the British establishment had for decades. As her brother, I think the royal family is very worried that Earl Spencer may speak out publicly and criticise the institution again.
‘This book shows that rather than him letting bygones be bygones, he was a ticking time bomb waiting to go off.’
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