Charles Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer and Princess Diana’s brother, shared many intimate details about his childhood in his memoir, A Very Private School. The book, released in March 2024, reveals harrowing abuse he suffered as a young student at Maidwell Hall, a boarding school in the U.K. His story has been very well received, so much so that Apple Books named it one of the best audiobooks of the year.
Princess Diana’s Brother, Charles Spencer, Just Received a Major Honor
Add his memoir to your holiday wish list
Published Nov 27, 2024
•5:06pm
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“Just found out about this today,” Spencer wrote in the caption of an Instagram post, sharing the news. “A Very Private School was a very tough book to write – and a bit of a brute to read out for the audiobook. So, thank you to all those who’ve listened to me read it- and deep gratitude to @applebooks for this great kindness.”
His childhood took a turn when he was sent to boarding school at 8 years old. A writeup about the memoir from Gallery Books reads: “A Very Private School offers a clear-eyed, first-hand account of a culture of cruelty at the school Charles Spencer attended in his youth and provides important insights into an antiquated boarding system. Exploring the long-lasting impact of his experiences, Spencer presents a candid reckoning with his past and a reclamation of his childhood.”
Some of the heartbreaking memories he recounts include being sexually abused by an assistant matron and beaten daily by a headmaster.
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Despite the severity of what he endured, Spencer’s father was unaware of what was going on. Conveniently though, there was one instance where his father managed to temporarily spring him from the boarding school for Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip’s 25th wedding anniversary.
“I was invited, but this was a bit of a problem for the school because they didn’t allow us out. But you couldn’t exactly decline an invitation from the Queen,” he told PureWow cohosts of the Royally Obsessed podcast Rachel Bowie and Roberta Fiorito in an exclusive chat.
Charles Spencer
In the memoir, Spencer also discusses growing up with Diana, who was his proud protector and source of maternal affection. “Diana was very good to me as a child,” he shared on Royally Obsessed. “Our mother left when I was quite young and Diana stepped in very kindly.”
Before attending Maidwell Hall, he went to a local Norfolk school with her called Silfield. “I was very excited to be joining the school where my big sister was going,” Spencer recalled. “My father always had a camera on the go, and he insisted on taking a photo of me back in 1968 when I was four, standing in my scarlet uniform with an ‘S’ on it for Silfield and Diana next to me. She looked like a big sister—half proud and half resentful that she’s sharing the stage with her younger [brother].”
The TLDR? Any Princess Diana loyalist needs to read (or listen to) this book for intimate details on her and her brother’s childhoods, as well as a troubling look at the U.K.’s boarding school tradition.