Earl Spencer’s unreleased book on Diana stolen in the Netherlands

Princess Diana, who died aged 36 following a car crash in Paris in 1997, would have turned 65 on 1 July this year.

Her sons Prince William and Prince Harry were aged 15 and 12 respectively at the time of her death.

Last month announcing the book’s publication, Earl Spencer explained ahead of the 30th anniversary of her death he had been inundated with interview requests and he wanted to write down his own thoughts and memories rather than “having the discomfort of again reading the opinions of others”.

“The aim of this book is to tell the truth about Diana from her brother’s perspective, just as I attempted to do when speaking at her funeral,” he added, referring to the eulogy he delivered in Westminster Abbey in September 1997.

“I want to speak on Diana’s behalf and do so in an openly positive way.”

In his eulogy, Earl Spencer described Princess Diana as the “very essence of compassion, of duty, of style, of beauty”, adding: “All over the world she was a symbol of selfless humanity… a standard bearer for the rights of the truly downtrodden.”

He also used the speech to criticise the media, calling her the “most hunted person of the modern age” and pledged to protect Prince William and Prince Harry and prevent them suffering a similar fate.

In 2023, copies of Prince Harry’s memoir Spare were accidentally put on sale in Spain days ahead of the official global release.