Diana’s interview on BBC: broadcast on investigation findings postponed
The BBC has postponed its broadcast of a Panorama investigation into reporter Martin Bashir’s 1995 interview with Diana, Princess of Wales.
The programme was expected to present the results of the investigation regarding claims that Bashir used fake bank statements to convince Diana to do the interview.
The film was due to air on BBC One on Monday but the broadcaster said it had been delayed due to a “significant duty of care issue” and no new date has been confirmed yet.
The 58-year-old was still with BBC News, but got seriously ill with Covid-19 when the allegations emerged late last year. He has since undergone a quadruple heart bypass and another heart operation more recently and left the corporation earlier this week due to ongoing health issues.
The decision to push back the Panorama episode comes shortly after a separate investigation into the interview – led by Lord Dyson – had concluded.
The BBC said Bashir had co-operated fully with the inquiry and would not comment publicly while that process was ongoing.
As the police in March had ruled out a criminal investigation, the second most senior judge in England and Wales, had been leading the investigation and tasked with looking into the steps Bashir and the corporation took to get the interview.
The famous, or infamous, Diana interview aired 25 years ago and watched by nearly 23 million people and included the quote “there were three of us in this marriage”, referring to Prince Charles’ relationship with Camilla Parker-Bowles; it was also in that interview that the princess talked openly about her difficulties with post-natal depression and bulimia.
Questions arose late last year over the interview, which was one of the most watched BBC programmes of all time and won Bashir a Bafta TV award, when late Diana’s brother accused Bashir of showing to the princess forged bank statements, in order to persuade her to do the interview.
The BBC has earlier apologised for the use of the statements, but has insisted they played “no part in her decision to take part in the interview”.
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