Judge Orders BBC to Release Emails Related to Diana Interview Amid Cover-Up Accusations

The broadcaster faces scrutiny over its handling of the Martin Bashir scandal, with Diana's brother, Earl Spencer, alleging a lack of transparency.

The BBC has been ordered by a judge to release thousands of emails relating to the controversial Panorama interview with Diana, Princess of Wales, amid accusations of a cover-up.
The emails are from a period in 2020 when the broadcaster was dealing with the scandal around the interview, and were initially requested via a Freedom of Information request by journalist Andrew Webb.
Earl Spencer, Diana's brother, has accused senior figures at the BBC of attempting to hide details about who knew what and when, and has criticized the corporation's use of licence fee money to mount a legal battle to keep certain information out of the public domain.
An independent inquiry by Lord Dyson in 2021 concluded that Martin Bashir, who conducted the interview, had used deception to secure it and then lied to BBC managers.
Bashir left the BBC in 1999, but returned in 2016 as its religious affairs editor. He officially stepped down from his job at the BBC in 2021.