Queen Camilla championed the transformative power of literature at Chatsworth House on September 19, 2026, delivering her literary festival address amid an intense public war of words between Buckingham Palace and Earl Spencer concerning a controversial new memoir about Princess Diana.
Literary Festival Address Amid Palace Tensions
Stepping into the Painted Hall of Chatsworth House in Derbyshire on Saturday, Queen Camilla addressed attendees for the fourth festival of The Queen’s Reading Room, a charity she founded after the success of her Instagram book club during the pandemic. The Grade I listed stately home, featuring a library containing over 17,000 volumes, provided the setting as Camilla drew parallels between the supportive literary community she has built and a notable proverb regarding togetherness and endurance.
“I created my Reading Room simply because, like all of us here, I love books and their life-enhancing power and I want to share that love with others. In those early days, I had no idea if anybody would be interested but six years on, we are a global community of millions from over 180 countries, swapping recommendations, undertaking research and donating thousands of books to women’s refuges and homeless shelters.”
Queen Camilla, via The Guardian and Eastern Daily Press
The Queen’s appearance arrived directly on the heels of an unprecedented Buckingham Palace intervention. The royal household issued a sharp public rebuke after extracts from Swan Song: Diana, My Sister—the upcoming memoir authored by Diana’s brother, Earl Spencer—surfaced in the press, airing bitter historical claims regarding King Charles III and the funeral arrangements for the late Princess of Wales.
Clashing Accounts Over the Legacy of Diana
The feud intensified after the Earl alleged in his autobiography that the King made disparaging remarks following Diana’s death. According to Spencer, an argument erupted over whether young Princes William and Harry, then aged 15 and 12, should walk behind their mother’s funeral cortege. The Earl claimed that after a heated exchange, Charles told him, We’ll forget her soon enough.
Buckingham Palace responded with a strongly worded statement asserting that fraternal grief can cloud an individual’s judgment and memory. Refusing to back down, Earl Spencer defended his account in a BBC interview with Laura Kuenssberg, insisting he was telling the truth.
Amid the swirling controversy, Camilla focused her public energy entirely on literacy and community outreach. During the Derbyshire festival, she met with members of local book clubs, including representatives from the Elm Foundation, a charity supporting victims of domestic abuse operating in the region.
New Book Recommendations and Upcoming BBC Documentary
Looking toward the autumn publishing season, Camilla unveiled four official selections for The Queen’s Reading Room Book Club Autumn 2026 season. The curated list features Finding Belle by Reeta Chakrabarti, The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, Whistler by Ann Patchett, and Sashenka by Simon Sebag Montefiore.
The festival also served as a launchpad for details regarding a forthcoming BBC Arts documentary titled The Book That Changed My Life. Produced as part of the National Year of Reading 2026, the programme is scheduled to broadcast on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer on 14 October, subject to final schedule confirmations.
The documentary will follow the Queen consort as she engages with individuals whose lives were fundamentally altered through reading, exploring scientific evidence linking literacy to improved health and personal resilience. Among the contributors featured is Ian Kirby from Gateshead, who discovered community and a fresh perspective following a traumatic domestic incident by joining a local book club.
“That is the beauty of a book. It can give you experiences you’ve never experienced, but they can also be an inspiration.”
Ian Kirby, documentary contributor, via The Guardian
Prominent literary figures, including author Lee Child and novelist Elif Shafak, joined trustee Gyles Brandreth and journalist Reeta Chakrabarti at the Chatsworth House gathering to celebrate the ongoing expansion of the global literacy initiative, which now connects millions of readers across more than 180 countries.