BBC PROBE
BBC launches internal probe after Martin Bashir’s Diana interview scandal
THE BBC today launched a fresh investigation into its own “editorial policies and governance” rules following the Martin Bashir scandal.
The Beeb set up a fresh internal review after Lord Dyson’s damning report into the 1995 Panorama interview with Diana, Princess of Wales, the board said today.
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Lord Dyson’s shocking probe has sent shockwaves through the BBC after it slammed Bashir’s web of lies and the broadcaster's shameless cover-up of his behaviour.
It found Bashir had forged bank statements, told Diana she was being spied on and that Prince Charles was having an affair with Tiggy Legge-Bourke — Harry and William’s nanny.
Bashir spun malicious tales in a bid to win her trust and secure a world-exclusive interview amid her divorce from Prince Charles.
After finally agreeing to speak with Bashir, Diana referred to Camilla Parker Bowles, now Charles’s wife, when she sensationally said: “There were three of us in the marriage.”
The statement from the BBC board said today: "We know we must also do what we can to prevent such an incident happening again.
"As such, we think it is right that we review the effectiveness of the BBC’s editorial policies and governance in detail."
They promised a "strong day-to-day editorial processes and a clear route" to handle any specifics arising from the report.
The board will look at the culture of the BBC too as part of its remit.
The work will be done by a group of non-executive board directors led by Sir Nick Serota, the BBC's senior independent director, and supported by Ian Hargreaves and Sir Robbie Gibb, non-executive members of the BBC's Editorial Guidelines and Standards Committee.
The probe will report back to top Beeb execs by September
The statement went on: "Their work will focus on oversight of the BBC's editorial practices and will consider in detail the robustness and independence of whistleblowing processes in editorial areas.
"Their work will moreover identify the lessons to be learned from Lord Dyson's review which may be relevant today.
"This has been a profoundly sobering period for us all. The board of the BBC has absolute faith that the mission and purposes of the BBC endure. We must strive to reinforce confidence in our world-class journalism and prove that we deserve the trust of all our audiences."
The Bashir interview led to the princess being “cast adrift” and left to fend for herself outside the royal circle.
Two years later she died in a car crash in a Paris tunnel.
Yesterday we revealed how Prince Charles was furious that the "lurid lies" from the interview took 27 years to be publicly corrected.
The BBC has written to the Prince of Wales to apologise for Martin Bashir’s “deceitful” tactics in securing the interview and agreed to never show it again.
A friend of the Prince of Wales said: “The narrative that came from that interview about Charles needs to be changed.
“He is privately furious that it has taken 27 years. The interview and allegations caused long-term damage to the future king and his household.”
Last week, William emphatically slammed the BBC for the interview and its fallout, insisting: “They let down mum, her family and the British public.”
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In a heartfelt outpouring, the Duke of Cambridge told of his “indescribable sadness” that his tragic mother had been tricked and deceived by Bashir, the Beeb and its leaders.
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Prince Harry also spoke out, paying tribute to his mother as an "incredible woman who dedicated her life to service".
He added: "That is the first step towards justice and truth."
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Martin Bashir DID fake bank statements to deceive Princess Diana into giving Panorama interview – and BBC covered it up