A CLOSE friend of Diana, Princess of Wales, has condemned as “bizarre and inappropriate” the choice of Richard Chartres, Bishop of London, to give the address at her memorial service this summer.

Rosa Monckton said Chartres had had “no relationship whatever” with the princess. Other friends claimed that, in his role as Dean of the Chapel Royal, the bishop and his staff failed to support her at the time of her divorce in 1996.

The service is being held on August 31, the 10th anniversary of Diana’s death. It is likely to be a ceremony for family and friends rather than a public event, although there are plans to televise it.

The choice of Chartres, 59, to give the address is understood to have been made by princes William and Harry.

But Monckton, whose daughter Domenica is a goddaughter of the princess, said: “This invitation is bizarre and inappropriate. As far as I am aware he had no relationship with Diana whatsoever.”

Patrick Jephson, Diana’s former private secretary, expressed similar concerns to those of Monckton, adding: “I wonder why it is not appropriate for the Archbishop of Canterbury to perform this task.”

He said clergy in the royal household “in shouting distance” of the princess had failed to come to her aid.

Chartres became Dean of the Chapel Royal in 1996, the year after he became Bishop of London.

Chartres, a contemporary of the Prince of Wales at Cam-bridge University, kept a vigil beside Diana’s coffin in Kensing-ton Palace on the eve of her funeral. However, he was given no formal role in the funeral at Westminster Abbey and was not invited to attend her burial at Althorp, the estate of the Spencer family in Northamptonshire.

Chartres was later appointed an executor of Diana’s will, but friends of the princess have criticised him for the way he carried out this role.

The memorial service will be conducted by Padre Patrick Irwin, chaplain to the Household Division, who has responsibility for the Guards Chapel in Wellington Barracks, London, where the service is expected to be held.

William and Harry chose the venue because, as officers in the Household Division, it is their regimental chapel. Those expected to attend include the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh, as well as Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall.

Several members of Diana’s family, including Earl Spencer, her brother, will also be there. There will also be numerous representatives of charities supported by the princess.

Chartres was unavailable for comment but a bishop in close contact with him said: “It’s not an unreasonable request. Richard’s connections were with the whole family, including Diana.”

A Clarence House spokes-woman said: “The Bishop of London was personally chosen and invited by Princes William and Harry because they very much want him to be there.”

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