![]() ![]() But I absolutely stand-by the evidence I gave a quarter of a century ago, and again more recently.I also reiterate that the bank statements had no bearing whatsoever on the personal choice by Princess Diana to take part in the interview. "It was a stupid thing to do and was an action I deeply regret. I apologised then, and I do so again now, over the fact that I asked for bank statements to be mocked up. The BBC offers that today."īashir said in a statement following the publication of the report: "This is the second time that I have willingly fully co-operated with an investigation into events more than 25 years ago. "While the BBC cannot turn back the clock after a quarter of a century, we can make a full and unconditional apology. The BBC should have made greater effort to get to the bottom of what happened at the time and been more transparent about what it knew. "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. Lord Dyson has identified clear failings. "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. The BBC accepts Lord Dyson’s findings in full. His report into the circumstances around the 1995 interview is both thorough and comprehensive. It enabled my investigation to establish facts based on evidence and for me to draw the detailed conclusions that have been set out today."īBC Director-General, Tim Davie said: "I would like to thank Lord Dyson. All key individuals gave comprehensive testimony and I am grateful for their cooperation. Lord Dyson said: "The report demonstrates, I believe, that this has been the thorough and fair investigation I set out to do. The BBC previously delayed the broadcast of a Panorama investigation into the interview.īashir, who was the BBC News religion editor, left the corporation last week on health grounds. His brother Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, reportedly also supported the inquiry. ![]() TV watchdog Ofcom has said previously it will not launch its own investigation into the BBC Panorama controversy, but will follow the independent inquiry "closely".ĭiana’s son Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, welcomed the launch of the investigation late last year, saying it "should help establish the truth behind the actions" that led to the programme. “We do not believe it is acceptable to retain these awards because of how the interview was obtained.” ![]() The corporation said in a statement: "The 1995 Panorama interview received a number of awards at the time. The BBC has also confirmed that they are returning the BAFTA received in 1996 for the interview. (C) Panorama: Princess Diana Interview / BBC)Īfter the report was published, the BBC is also believed to have written to the royal family to apologise, according to PA news agency. He added: “In the end, when she died two years later, she was without any form of real protection.” The Dyson inquiry found that Bashir used “deceitful behaviour” and was in “serious breach” of the BBC’s producer guidelines to secure the 1995 interview.Įarl Spencer told the new BBC programme: “The irony is that I met Martin Bashir on the 31st of August 1995 because exactly two years later she died, and I do draw a line between the two events.”Īfter he made the introduction, Earl Spencer says it became “quite clear that everyone was going to be made untrustworthy, and I think that Diana did lose trust in really key people”. He suggested this “inevitably made her vulnerable to people who were unable properly to look after her”. This evening, Diana’s former private secretary Commander Patrick Jephson also told the programme that after the face-to-face interview, she was “cast adrift” from the “royal support structure that had guided and safeguarded her for so many years”. "A shocking, criminal abuse of public money." ![]()
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