Diana's brother praises Harry for daughter's name: 'Fantastic - it's not a surprise'

Watch: Earl Spencer hails Harry and Meghan’s tribute to Diana

Princess Diana's brother has praised his nephew Prince Harry for including the late royal in his daughter's name.

Harry announced the arrival of his daughter Lilibet Diana on 6 June, two days after she was born in Santa Barbara, California, and the little girl's middle name did not surprise many royal-watchers.

Prince William also included Diana in his daughter's names when she was born in 2015.

Charles Spencer, the 9th Earl Spencer and Diana's brother, said it was not a surprise to him.

He told ITV: "[It's] fantastic, it's not a surprise, I thought Diana would be in there.

"And how lovely, it's such a distinctive name and of course it comes with so much emotion for them, I'm sure.

"Wonderful that she is remembered by another generation."

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Earl Spencer led the calls for a second inquiry into the circumstances around the 1997 Panorama interview Diana did with Martin Bashir, with Lord Dyson's investigation concluding the journalist used devious and dishonest means to secure the chat with the royal.

William and Harry were supportive of the inquiry and both released statements following the report's publication.

Earl Spencer said he felt his sister had been vindicated by the findings of the report.

He said: "She was tricked into a particular type of interview and that set the tone for a lot of what she said.

"Of course she had the right to speak, I would have supported that, but not by being tricked."

Watch: Princess Diana would have loved Prince Harry's baby name choice

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Harry and Meghan's decision to name their daughter Lilibet, after the Queen's nickname as a child, raised some eyebrows among royal experts in the UK, because very few people used the name for Her Majesty.

It was said to have stuck as a nickname when her grandfather, George V, noticed the young Princess Elizabeth couldn't quite pronounce her own name, and called herself Lilibet.

However it was mostly her family and her late husband Prince Philip who used it.

The couple said they would not have given their daughter the name if it were not for the Queen's support.

Earl Spencer said he saw the "newspapers going berserk again" over the name, but saw things "in terms of family".

He told Lorraine Kelly on her ITV show: "I remember when I was a boy and Diana became Princess of Wales I just sort of ploughed along on the same path and you separate the media personality from the real person who is a member of her family."

A statement on the Archewell website announcing the arrival of Lilibet explained: "Lili is named after her great-grandmother, Her Majesty The Queen, whose family nickname is Lilibet. Her middle name, Diana, was chosen to honour her beloved late grandmother, The Princess of Wales."

A message from Harry and Meghan said: "She is more than we could have ever imagined, and we remain grateful for the love and prayers we’ve felt from across the globe. Thank you for your continued kindness and support during this very special time for our family."

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