Copies of Charles Spencer’s new memoir about his sister Princess Diana have been stolen from a lorry ahead of its release date, according to reports.
The book, titled Swan Song: Diana, My Sister, is set to be released globally next Tuesday (22 September) – but copies have been snatched from a lorry in the Netherlands, with Dutch police reportedly investigating the break-in.
A source told the Daily Mail: “It's extremely suspicious. Nothing like this has ever happened before. This is probably the biggest book of the year and the security surrounding it has been incredibly tight.”
“This unprecedented incident is being taken extremely seriously,” they added.
The Mail reports that the lorry had left a printing plant and was on its way to a warehouse when the driver stopped for a break in a lay-by late on Monday (14 September) night.
They are said to have realised the truck had been broken into the following morning, when they discovered the only books missing were four copies of the Earl’s memoir.
The Independent has contacted the book’s UK publisher Penguin Michael Joseph, a division of Penguin Random House, for comment.
Spencer’s book has been described by the publisher as “the most intimate, loving and honest portrait yet” of Princess Diana – and it’s expected to include plenty of new details about her life, including her marriage to Charles, treatment by the press and the week leading up to her tragic death in 1997.
Announcing the book last month, Spencer, 62, said he was hoping to “tell the truth about Diana” from his perspective, “just as I attempted to do when speaking at her funeral”.
The Earl delivered a eulogy at Diana’s funeral in September 1997, where he described his sister as “the most hunted person of the modern age” and promised to protect her sons, Princes William and Harry. The funeral was broadcast worldwide to an audience of 2.5 billion.
Spencer said he decided to write the memoir because, “with the 30th anniversary of Diana's tragic death on the skyline, I've been inundated yet again with requests for interviews about my sister”.
“This has convinced me to write down my own thoughts and memories, once and for all, rather than having the discomfort of again reading the opinions of others, many of which are based on untruths that have become accepted over time.”
The book comes at yet another tense time for the royals, following the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s unexpected move back to the UK.
The couple and their two children, seven-year-old Archie and Lilibet, five, made the shock decision to return six years after the so-called “Megxit” earlier this month.
Harry and Meghan’s decision to move back comes amid an ongoing row over whether the Sussexes should be entitled to taxpayer-funded security.
And while Meghan shared a sweet video of their new life in the countryside on social media over the weekend, the relocation from Montecito, California, hasn’t gone entirely smoothly, with Archie and Lilibet changing schools after less than a week due to security concerns.
