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Call to cancel Diana documentary Denial over Diana crash images
(1 day later)
A Channel 4 documentary featuring graphic images of the car crash that killed Princess Diana should be cancelled, the Conservatives have said. Channel 4 has denied that a documentary about the car crash which killed Princess Diana contains graphic images of the victims.
Shadow culture secretary Hugo Swire urged the channel's bosses to shelve the show Diana: The Witnesses In The Tunnel, due to be screened on 6 June. Following a newspaper report, shadow culture secretary Hugo Swire urged the channel's bosses to cancel the show, Diana: The Witnesses In The Tunnel.
It includes pictures taken by French photographers following the collision in Paris in 1997. Due to be shown on 6 June, it includes pictures taken by French photographers following the 1997 collision in Paris.
Channel 4 told the Observer it did not believe the images were intrusive. Channel 4 said none of the images identified Diana or the other victims.
The Observer reported that the film features a picture of the Princess of Wales being treated with oxygen by a French doctor along with images of the inside of the car. Diana, 36, Dodi Al Fayed, 42, and driver Henri Paul were killed when their Mercedes crashed in the Pont de l'Alma tunnel in Paris as they drove away from pursuing paparazzi after leaving the Ritz Hotel.
'Public sensitivity'
The Observer reported the Channel 4 film features a picture of the Princess of Wales being treated with oxygen by a French doctor, along with images of the inside of the car.
Interviews with photographers who were at the scene and other witnesses are also included, the paper said.Interviews with photographers who were at the scene and other witnesses are also included, the paper said.
This kind of coverage must be deeply distressing to Princes William and Harry Hugo Swire Shadow culture secretary But Channel 4 said the Observer article was "both misleading and inaccurate" because much of it is was based on the views of people who had not seen the film.
Mr Swire said Channel 4 needed to remember that the princess was a mother as well as a public figure. [Channel 4] are saying 'roll up, roll up - come and look at this' Rosa Monckton, friend of Diana
"This kind of coverage must be deeply distressing to Princes William and Harry," he said. "The death of Diana, Princess of Wales, has been a defining moment in British contemporary history, affecting the public's view of the monarchy and of celebrity photographers.
"We would expect more from a public service broadcaster than showing sensationalist material in this way." "We acknowledge that there is great public sensitivity surrounding pictures of the victims and these have not been included.
He added: "The best thing Channel 4 can do for the British public and Diana's family is simply not to broadcast this programme." "Only one image shows the occupants of the car after the crash and it has been appropriately obscured to avoid any unwarranted intrusion into their privacy or that of their families.
'Not intrusive' "We are confident that once people have seen this film they will agree that it is a well-made and responsible documentary."
A spokesman for Channel 4 told the Observer there was a "genuine public interest" in the events surrounding the collision. Reacting to the newspaper article, Mr Swire said the coverage would be "deeply distressing" to Princes William and Harry.
He added: "We don't think the pictures are intrusive and we have thought very carefully about the sensitivities of the families involved. We are confident that once people have seen this film they will agree that it is a well-made and responsible documentary Channel 4
"Appropriate action has been taken to avoid unwanted intrusion into the privacy of the families." Diana's friend Rosa Monckton told BBC Radio Four's The World at One the decision to broadcast the pictures was designed to boost ratings.
Earlier this month Channel 4 came under fire from media regulator Ofcom which ruled that the channel's Celebrity Big Brother breached its code of conduct over the race row which dogged the series in January. "It's rather like...how people stop on a motorway to look at car crashes. But they are summoning people; they are saying 'roll up, roll up - come and look at this'.
Crash inquiry "She can't be hurt by it but her boys can. Above all else, Diana was a mother," she said.
Diana, 36, and 42-year-old Dodi Al Fayed were killed when their Mercedes crashed in the Pont de l'Alma tunnel in Paris as they were being driven away from pursuing paparazzi after leaving the Ritz Hotel. The press director for Mohamed Al Fayed, Katharine Witty, told the BBC it was nonsense for Channel 4 to argue it was acting in the public interest:
A three-year inquiry conducted by former Metropolitan Police chief Lord Stevens concluded that Princess Diana had died in a tragic accident. "It is a sleazy attempt to gain ratings so I think there would have to be a lot of pressure on them for them to pull it. "
The inquiry report said chauffeur Henri Paul, who also died, was speeding and over the legal drink-drive limit. But I hope they have the decency at least to hand over the new material they have to the coroner so that it can be judged fairly by the jury."
Inquests due
Channel 4's head of history, science and religion, Hamish Mykura, said suggestions they had been "masterminding" a publicity stunt were untrue.
He added the photograph showing the interior of the car with its occupants blanked out had been published in the Sun newspaper last July.
A three-year inquiry conducted by former Metropolitan Police chief Lord Stevens concluded Princess Diana had died in a tragic accident. Chauffeur Henri Paul was speeding and over the legal drink-drive limit, it said.
In 2004 Princess Diana's brother, Lord Spencer, said he was "shocked and sickened" by the broadcast of photographs of his dying sister by US network CBS in a programme on the accident.In 2004 Princess Diana's brother, Lord Spencer, said he was "shocked and sickened" by the broadcast of photographs of his dying sister by US network CBS in a programme on the accident.
Inquests into the deaths of Princess Diana and Dodi Al Fayed are due to begin in October.Inquests into the deaths of Princess Diana and Dodi Al Fayed are due to begin in October.