Jephson, of advice given him from an old-timer in Royal employ: " 'Never forget: to these people, you're just a toy. They'll wind you up and watch you whizz all over the place, and then, when your spring runs down, they'll throw you away and get another one.' " From this advice, and his observations on life in Royal employ, he'd decided that the key to survival was to get himself into a position of relative power: having the duty of personnel management. He'd observed many hirings and firings. There were times when he'd tried to intercede, protecting a target of Royal displeasure; other times, when he just tried to soften the blow, when it seemed hopeless--and dangerous--to stick too close to one so tainted in the Royal eyes.
It's obvious that Jephson kept his job for as long as he did, by "flying under the radar," i.e., keeping most of his opinions to himself, adjusting to his boss' moods, playing it as a game of skill, priding himself on his cleverness and resiliency. It all eventually grew wearisome for him; he likely knew he couldn't keep silent much longer about certain things that were galling him; and he began doing things with an eye to his future after he left Diana's employ. Even while she was still alive, I remember reading "exclusives" leaked to trusted Royal watchers, that I now recognize as Jephson's wording. He'd been aghast at many things that Diana was doing that smacked of treason; and he'd made sure that Top Royal watchers and Senior Palace officials understood that his first loyalty was to the Queen. He sought to create distance between himself and Diana well before tendering his resignation in 1995--after the "last straw": Diana's insult to Tiggy Legge-Bourke at the Christmas party ( "So sorry about the baby," an allusion to the alleged abortion Tiggy had had, as she had been rumoured to have been sleeping with Prince Charles--something she's denied. But Diana had been triumphant, believing Tiggy's reaction to have been proof of it's truth. It WAS a rather extreme reaction--she'd collapsed, crying hysterically. Why didn't she just say, "What baby?" or "That's not true." ). Jephsom cites this prominantly, as well as other examples of her Royal scyth swinging wide and wildly.
Did Jephson betray Diana?
Actually, he claims in a British television interview: "When she was nice, she was very, very nice. Sometimes she was horrid; but at least I understand why she was horrid, and I hope through the book, I've explained to other people.
"It wasn't an easy decision to write the book, and in many ways, it went against the grain of my upbringing and my experience and my responsibilities when I was a member of the Royal Household.
"But I was quite open about it, and certainly initially, I was left in no doubt that in Senior quarters in Buckingham Palace what I was doing, what would be seen as an authoritative and balanced account, would be useful. Later, they--for reasons of internal Palace politics--changed that quite dramatically."
So at first, the Palace higher-ups had lulled Jephson into believing that he would be supported? Then, when the book was published, revealing a book rife with critism, not only for Diana, but the Palace officials as well, they took it back, roasting him? Typical. They put themselves in the best light, always.
Ingrid Steward of Majesty Magazine opines that Jephson will likely suffer for this by being persona non grata in the important social circles he prizes. Likely so. Even though these people are likely lapping it all up privately, they tut-tut about it publicly. Many will not want to suffer by association. There are some social bigshots and brown noses who go to great lengths to demonstrate their loyalty. For instance, after Alan Starkey wrote his tell-all on Fergie, some of her friends went to the trouble of inviting him to a party, just so they could have the pleasure of bodily throwing him out, upon arrival!
Did he tell anything new about Diana? Yes; and he elaborates on already-known stories. It is a valuable record; and indeed, the Palace and others thought it was all right for him to write it--so long as it was kept within the Palace, as part of the archive. But that way, only historians of another age would see it. This way, people can question Jephson further in things, perhaps getting him to reaffirm his opinions, and to recall more things. They can also get a handle on his own subjective state, in gauging the validity of his opinions and observations. They could not do so, if this memoir had been unavailable for a hundred years.
If you don't want to contribute to this man's income, then you can read it for free, in a library, or wait awhile for it to hit the bargain shelves. The consumer rules! But I'm glad I bought mine.
COPYRIGHT ©2000 SUSAN BROWN