The British Broadcasting Corp. denies that anyone in the Royal Family is angry about its coverage of the Queen Mother's death.

Some British newspapers reported on Monday that Prince Charles was so incensed by the state broadcaster's lack of respect in reporting on his grandmother's death that he took his moving personal interview to a commercial broadcaster, ITN.

The BBC said on Tuesday that it had been assured by Buckingham Palace the stories were false.




BBC News Online reported that Simon Walker, the Queen's communications secretary, had written to the broadcaster to say Charles and the rest of the Royal Family had no complaints, and ITN got the interview because it was their turn.

The Daily Mail and Times reported that the palace was in turmoil because BBC presenters weren't wearing black ties – that the BBC had told them not to do so until the funeral.

BBC reporter wears a maroon tie on the day of the Queen Mother's death
BBC reporter wears a maroon tie on the day of the Queen Mother's death

The Royals were also reported to be angry over what was called an "intrusive" interview with Margaret Rhodes, the Queen Mother's niece, about the matriarch's final few minutes.

All of it was dismissed as "nonsense" by the BBC, and it quoted the palace to back it up.

Choosing ITN wasn't up to Charles, it said. The commercial network was next in line after the BBC filmed the tribute to Princess Margaret who died in February.

The BBC's deputy director of new Mark Damazar called the broadcasters' coverage of the Queen Mum's death "excellent and absolutely commensurate with the BBC's standards."

"I thought the program was fine and rose to the occasion and found tone and historic sweep and a great affection for the Queen Mother's dedication and duty over the decades in a thoroughly professional manner," he said.

"It may be a tragedy for the family and for Prince Charles to speak the way he does, but ordinary people don't feel like that," he said. "They feel a tinge of sadness and a lot of warmth for what a grand old lady she was."

While the newspapers reported an uproar over poor coverage on the state broadcaster, the BBC said it had received about 1,000 calls about the issue.

It said complaints about its approach to the story are split about evenly between those who say it's not reverential enough, and those who say there's been too much time devoted to the story.

And it says that for every call complaining about the way the broadcaster is handling the Queen Mother's death, there are seven asking when their sports and soap operas will return.