Charles Spencer’s Unreleased Princess Diana Memoir Targeted in Book Heist
By Alexus Mosley
Photo Credit: IG @charlesspencer
Just days before its scheduled release, Charles Spencer’s new memoir about his late sister Princess Diana has become the center of an unusually dramatic publishing story.
Four copies of Swan Song: Diana, My Sister were reportedly stolen from a delivery truck in the Netherlands while the driver was stopped for a mandatory rest break.
The theft was not discovered until the following morning.
According to reports, the stolen books were Dutch-language editions of the memoir, titled Zwanenzang, printed by publisher Overamstel.
The incident is especially unusual because of the tight security surrounding the book ahead of publication. One publishing source described the theft as unprecedented, noting that publishers had taken extensive precautions to prevent the memoir from leaking before release.
Highly anticipated books have leaked early before, but usually because copies accidentally go on sale ahead of schedule. A physical theft of unreleased copies is a much rarer situation.
Spencer’s memoir is his first book focused specifically on Diana. The book looks back at their childhood at Althorp, Diana’s marriage to then-Prince Charles, her treatment by the British press and the days leading up to her death in Paris in August 1997.
Spencer has also said he wanted to address what he considers false narratives about his sister ahead of the 30th anniversary of her death next year. He announced the memoir last month, explaining that the number of interview requests he continued to receive about Diana encouraged him to put his own account on the record.
Spencer has described Swan Song as the most personal of the ten books he has written. After recording the audiobook, he also wrote on Instagram that he believed Diana would have approved of what he had written.
Despite the theft, the book’s release has not been delayed. Swan Song: Diana, My Sister is still scheduled for worldwide release on September 22.
For now, the mystery surrounding the missing copies has only added another layer of attention to what was already expected to be one of the most closely watched royal books of the year.