Charles Spencer, the younger sibling of the late Princess Diana has poignantly revealed how he still visits her grave on a near daily basis, almost three decades on since her tragic death
Earl Spencer continues to visit the grave of his late sister Princess Diana, almost daily (
Princess Diana’s brother Charles Spencer has poignantly admitted that he visits his older sister’s grave “pretty much every day” – 27 years after the royal tragically lost her life.
Charles shared the news on Tuesday’s episode of Good Morning Britain, when he recalled how he regularly visits his sister’s grave, at her burial site on the Spencer family ancestral home, Althorp. Charles has been the custodian of the estate since 1992, when his father John Spencer, 8th Earl Spencer sadly died.
Tucked away on the lavish estate, the former Princess of Wales is buried on a picturesque island at an ornamental lake nestled deep within Althorp Park’s Pleasure Garden. Only accessible by boat, the secluded area is off limits to the public, with only a handful of her loved ones permitted to visit her final resting place.
“Last week, one of her closest childhood friends came and was on the island. And that was so nice,” said Spencer, who is 9th Earl Spencer.
Charles Spencer candidly revealed how deeply his sister’s death still affects him (
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When Diana died back in August 1997, her only brother eulogised her at her funeral the following month, and still continues to mourn her death every day, almost three decades after her tragic loss.
“I’m sure pretty much everyone watching this program has had trauma in their family at some point,” he said on Good Morning Britain. “And, like everyone else, you sort of get used to it without it ever going away.”
Although the grave remains secluded now, it wasn’t always inaccessible to the public, with Prince Harry himself having previously written in his memoir Spare, that a bridge was previously in-situ for people to pay their respects, however it was later removed over security concerns.
“The bridge had been removed, to give my mother privacy, to keep intruders away,” he wrote.
In the same book, Harry also went on to detail how the loss of his mother had deeply impacted him, while also highlighting the emotion that accompanied the moment he was able to bring his wife Meghan Markle to her graveside for the first time in 2022 on what would have been the 25th anniversary of her death.
Prince Harry also previously recalled how his uncle had been instrumental in taking his wife Meghan Markle to visit Diana’s grave
The visit started with a “little shove” from his uncle Charles Spencer through some stubborn mud, as the duo rowed out on a boat to the island for the deeply personal visit.
“No visit to this place was ever easy, but this one… twenty-fifth anniversary,” Prince Harry penned in Spare. “And Meg’s first time. At long last, I was bringing the girl of my dreams home to meet mum.”
“We hesitated, hugging, and then I went first. I placed flowers on the grave. Meg gave me a moment, and I spoke to my mother in my head, told her I missed her, asked her for guidance and clarity,” he continued.
“Feeling that Meg might also want a moment, I went around the hedge, scanned the pond. When I came back, Meg was kneeling, eyes shut, palms against the stone.”
“I asked, as we walked back to the boat, what she’d prayed for,” Prince Harry added.
“Clarity, she said. And guidance.”