Amanda Platell has offered a personal reflection on Earl Spencer’s recent revelations about his grief following the death of his sister, Diana, Princess of Wales. In his new book, Spencer makes contentious claims regarding King Charles’s demeanor in the hours after Diana’s 1997 death, including that the then-Prince of Wales appeared "giddily elated" and allegedly remarked, "Rest assured, we will forget her soon enough."

Platell expresses skepticism about these assertions but acknowledges the profound impact of fraternal grief, a sentiment she shares with Spencer. She notes that Spencer, aged 33 when he lost his sister, and she, aged 37 when she buried her own brother, have both endured nearly three decades of ongoing sorrow. Platell connects Spencer’s account of his pain to her own experiences with loss, highlighting that grief can persist silently and shape memories over time.

One particularly poignant detail in Spencer’s narrative concerns the refusal by the Palace to allow Mozart’s Requiem—a piece Diana had reportedly wished to be played at her funeral—to be performed, an exclusion that caused him deep distress. Platell draws parallels between this and her own family’s struggles during her brother’s funeral in Perth, where tensions arose about who would oversee the service and who could speak, underscoring the complexities that often accompany bereavement.

The King’s response to Spencer’s book, noting 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,” resonated with Platell. She suggests that while she questions some of Spencer’s claims, she understands his motivation to tell his version of events, particularly as a sibling seeking to assert his perspective amid public and historical narratives.

Ultimately, Platell emphasizes that fraternal grief is enduring and often accompanied by unresolved emotions and conflicts. Both Spencer’s account and her own experience reveal the lasting complexities faced by those mourning close family members, especially when their private grief intersects with public scrutiny.