Princess Diana’s former chef Darren McGrady has criticised Earl Spencer’s new memoir as a bitter dispute over claims about King Charles continues.
Mr McGrady accused Diana’s brother of writing a “moneymaking spiteful book” after Earl Spencer defended his account of a private conversation with the King shortly after Diana’s death.
The former royal chef said he had recently crossed paths with Earl Spencer at Althorp, the Spencer family estate.
He said he had been unable to speak to him after learning about the claims contained in the book.
“Had I known then what he planned to spew in his moneymaking spiteful book, I would have told him how disgusted his sister would have been,” Mr McGrady said on Instagram.
Mr McGrady had previously cooked for Diana and her family at Kensington Palace.
He was her personal chef from 1993 until her death in 1997, having previously worked as a personal chef to Queen Elizabeth II.
The former chef has previously spoken publicly about his time working for Diana, including her approach to food, her meals with William and Harry and her interest in charity work.
His latest comments were made after he said he had encountered Earl Spencer at Althorp but could not bring himself to speak to him.
“I bumped into Earl Spencer a few weeks ago when I was at Althorp but couldn’t bring myself to speak to him (despite cooking for him several times when he could be bothered to come to Kensington Palace for lunch with the Princess),” he said.
His intervention comes as Earl Spencer continues to defend allegations made in his memoir Swan Song: Diana, My Sister.
The book claims the then-Prince Charles told Earl Spencer, “we’ll forget her soon enough” during a phone call in the days after Diana’s death.
Earl Spencer has insisted he remembers the exchange accurately.
“I’ve only ever had two calls with Prince Charles at any stage in my life,” he told the BBC.
“I was hyper-alert to what he was saying, and those are precisely the words that he said, and I promise that to you now.”
The Earl said he had told close friends and family about the conversation at the time because of what he described as its “monstrous” nature.
“Genuinely, that is what he said.”
“I don’t hear him saying he didn’t say that.”
Buckingham Palace has not directly denied that the conversation took place.
Instead, a statement issued on behalf of the King pointed to the effect grief can have on recollection.
“While we do not comment on books as a matter of principle, His Majesty is mindful that the pain of fraternal grief can cloud reason, affect judgment and colour memory in ways others do not recognise, even many years after such a loss,” the palace said in a statement.
Earl Spencer rejected the implication that his memory of the conversation was unreliable.
“I’m telling the truth.”
The claim forms part of a wider series of allegations in the memoir about the aftermath of Diana’s death.
Earl Spencer also recounts a disagreement over the funeral procession and the decision for Princes William and Harry to walk behind their mother’s coffin.
According to an excerpt from the book, the then-Prince Charles wanted to walk between his two sons.
“Prince Charles tried to take charge, having seemingly thought hard about the formation that the five of us chief mourners would adopt behind Diana,” the excerpt states.
“When he said, ‘Now, I will walk in the centre, with William on my right and Harry on my left’, Prince Philip overruled him, in an even voice that closed down any possible dissent.
“’No, that isn’t how we will do it,’ he said.
“Then, nodding towards me, he (Prince Philip) continued: ‘Charles (Spencer) is representing his sister and their family, so he will walk in the middle, with William and Harry either side of him, and you and I will be on the outside flanks.’
“Prince Charles looked pained but capitulated to his father’s authority without a word.”
Earl Spencer’s memoir is due to be released internationally on Tuesday.