As the controversial extended book, Diana: Her True Story In Her Own Words, went on sale yesterday, its author, Andrew Morton, defended his decision to publish, insisting he felt a "responsibility" to those who wanted to understand Diana.
The executors of Princess Diana's will - her mother and sister, Mrs Frances Shand Kydd and Lady Sarah McCorquodale - are "very distressed and saddened" by the book and have sought legal advice.
Earlier this week, Mr Morton, who could earn £2 million from new sales of the book, admitted what many observers had privately suspected since the original version was published in 1992, that Princess Diana was the main source of the book.
However, in a live television interview yesterday on Granada TV's This Morning programme, Mr Morton denied reports that he had discussed the publication of the book the day after Princess Diana's death as "total fabrication".
The book was not a commercial attempt to profit from the princess's death, he said, but an effort to "end the distortion" and "face up" to the facts of her life within the royal family as she had remembered them.
"In terms of history it is a historical document. It is her voice. You have the chance to read her words," he said.
Sales of the book were brisk yesterday. Several callers to the programme expressed their disappointment with Mr Morton's decision but he replied that his critics had demonstrated "brass neck" in attacking "probably the scoop of the century".
Princess Diana had taped answers to written questions which were passed on by an intermediary, Mr Morton explained.
Asked what impact he thought the book would have on Prince William and Prince Harry, Mr Morton gave a measured response. If they "really" wanted to understand their mother, he said, "they would want to read her words". Mr Morton appeared agitated and insisted the boys were fully aware of the problems their mother encountered at the hands of the royal family because their father, Prince Charles, had spoken about his marriage to his biographer, Jonathan Dimbleby.
The book was written with "her co-operation, her full co-operation", he said. "I am very proud that she chose to tell me her story. It is her legacy, her final testament."
However, fresh controversy surrounds the ownership of the tapes from which Mr Morton updated his book. He maintained yesterday that he owned the copyright. The Spencer family responded that the executors of the princess's will would be considering their legal position concerning the ownership of the tapes. But with the book already on the shelves, and serialised by People magazine in the US, an attempt to halt publication appears unlikely.
Buckingham Palace is understood to be deeply unhappy with the publication of the book so soon after the princess's death. Meanwhile, Mr Trevor ReesJones, the bodyguard who was seriously injured in the car crash that killed the princess, Mr Dodi Fayed and their driver, Mr Henri Paul, was released from the Pitie Salpetriere Hospital in Paris yesterday and was immediately transferred to a secret location in Britain.
Mr Rees-Jones flew to Britain in a helicopter provided by his employer, the millionaire businessman and owner of Harrods, Mr Mohammed al-Fayed. He appeared frail and his face was bruised and swollen as he boarded the flight on the outskirts of Paris.
Reuter adds from Paris: Sources close to the inquiry into Princess Diana's fatal crash said yesterday that the Mercedes had traces of white paint on it which could have come from hitting another car.
An inspection of the Mercedes wreck showed there were "white flakes, which leads us to suppose the car involved was white".
Investigators earlier said shards of glass and paint chips found at the accident site came from a red Fiat Uno which might have caused the driver to lose control as he sped towards the tunnel.