In "Swan Song: Diana, My Sister", published on Tuesday by Penguin, Spencer wrote that Morgan, then editor of the Daily Mirror, was partly responsible for the Sunday Mirror’s November 7, 1993, front‑page spread of Diana exercising in a leotard, allegedly captured by a hidden camera in a gym.
Morgan rebutted the allegation on his YouTube programme "Piers Morgan Uncensored", pointing out that the photographs appeared two years before he became editor of the Daily Mirror in October 1995, and that at the time he was writing a show‑biz column for the rival Sun newspaper.
The following day Spencer issued a statement acknowledging the mistake, saying, "Earl Spencer’s account of his conversation with Piers Morgan is accurate. Morgan was surly and annoyed when Earl Spencer called personally to tell him that he was not welcome at his sister’s funeral," and admitting he had incorrectly assumed Morgan held the Mirror editorship when the photos were published.
Morgan responded on social media, reiterating his threat of legal action against Spencer and Penguin, demanding the removal of the defamatory passages and seeking damages for the alleged harm to the King’s Trust.
Spencer’s memoir has already sparked controversy beyond the Morgan dispute, including a claim that King Charles once said “we’ll forget her soon enough” after Diana’s death, prompting a sharp rebuke from Buckingham Palace and a broader "war of words" with the royal family.
The book’s launch has been muted in London’s retail sector; several stores, including Waterstones’ flagship Piccadilly shop, have marked the £28 volume at half price, with dozens of copies bearing red discount stickers, suggesting a tepid commercial response amid the legal and reputational fallout.