Charles Spencer Opens Up About Being Sexually Abused in Boarding School | Lorraine
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ก.ย. 2024
- In a devastating new book, Charles Spencer speaks for the first time about the bullying and physical and sexual assault he suffered at boarding school. He'll talk about feeling abandoned at eight years old when he started at Maidwell Hall, why he felt like he couldn't speak out at the time, and why it took him until his 40s to fully understand the damage of his experience - and why he now wants to help others.
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Broadcast on 11/03/24
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It breaks your heart to know any child was ever abused. To think of the tens of thousands who will never be able to tell their stories. This is a brave thing to do.
Agree completely x
Agree 💯, many of us have never told a soul.
It happens just as much to children of the Elite and often it's the Elite who are the abusers. Just need to Google Cathy O brien who was sold into the Whitehouse by her abusive father and TH-cam Anneke Lucas child trafficking survivor
Re Amber heards trolls were from Saudi Arabia, Russia and depps lawyer was and is a nasty POS. Depp is good friends with mbs and they bonded over thier dealings with the us.
Depp has been ostracised from Hollywood and mbs well he had kashoggi arrested on his orders. Depp film Jeanne du Barry in Qatar. Or at least stayed with mbs while he made the film.
Something so genuine about this gentleman. A hard listen. Wishing him peace and love from here on in.
Yes agree
May God continue protecting him and his family
He seems to have the same vulnerability as Diana ...
Yes, he seems very genuine, and who can forget his speech at Di’s funeral, soulful and incredibly brutally honest.
@@Itsreallyme571 yes you can see it
It’s an emotional abandonment that scars one for life
Agree.
I'd never be able to do that to my children. Children deserve to grow up in a loving family.
His mother did not ABANDON him. Her father threw her out of the house.
He has courage ..... wishing Earl Spencer all the best.
Those poor Spencer kids all had terrible childhoods. 💔 Earl Spencer is a brave man!
What a vile boarding school 🏫 Charles Spencer went too😡 l can't believe 😱it still open today. Charles Spencer suffered in he childhood as much as he late sister Diana did it didn't help their mother had lost custody of her children and was living apart from them, Charles Spencer parents went to their grave 🪦 not knowing the truth.
It all started with their mother leaving the family. The kids were left to fend off on their own.
@@RoSen344 If we really want to talk about where it all started, it all started when their father became an alcoholic and started abusing their mother, prompting her to run. Then it continued on to papa dearest not allowing for mum to take the children with her, or even so much even see them, as revenge for her leaving. It then also continued onto him neglecting his own children, whilst also not allowing them to have a mother, and dispatching them to boarding school as early as eight, so he wouldn't have to deal with them. And this sir/mam is where it all started, thank you very much.
@@selmahare exactly
Thanks for the explanation, now I understand why he didn't tell any one of his parents that this was happening to him back then. So sad, I guess just because you grow up an aristocrat doesn't mean you have it made I guess.@@selmahare
To think that so many of these psychologically damaged kids from these schools end up in positions of power and in government is a scarey thought. It actually explains a lot.
Well said. 😢
For that reason alone they should be banned from such positions
@@witlesswonderthe2nd883 Why punish the abused? Having psychotherapy would be better for everyone.
Indeed!
LIFE
Our neighbor sent his son to boarding school at age 8 yrs old. His first letter home was to ask if his parents could send his teddy to him. I always thought that practice was SO barbaric!! It is abandonment by the parents. That alone would cause issues, but to have to endure cold, callous, abusers in addition is just horrendous. Charles Spencer has done many others a huge service in acknowledging and talking openly about this.
I worked with a lovely guy who was sent to boarding school aged 5 (reasons I won't put here). I don't believe he came to harm like Earl Spencer tragically did - but, like your neighbour, I do think it was harmful to him emotionally.
@charleswhite758, Charles, I see this comment from you here after I wrote a lengthy response to you below another comment.
@charleswhite758 perhaps he wanted his teddy because he felt abandoned?! An 8 year old is a young child. You sound like a very cold, callous person.
@@lauralott2741 Doesn't he just...
@charleswhite758 i think TH-cam do this s lot. Stick things in moderator even if there’s nothing ride in it etc/ they do it with long stuff.
Wow. Good for him speaking up. It’s hard, especially for male victims, to talk about these things publicly.
People never STOP talking about this sort of thing these days! Give it a rest.
@@zzzbbbooo Why watch the video if you dont like the subject so weird ? out of the millions of videos why watch this one ??
@@zzzbbboooNor should they. No one has to suffer in silence.
My grandson is 7, the thought of sending him away to boarding school at that age is traumatising.
Absolutely .And what for ? No use to keep reproducing the same model forever, but this require a major change in the political English world , where those who have it , still have it ...
FABULOUS that Earl Spencer has been able to deal with the inevitable complexity and pain of his past to such an extent to finally be able to TELL THE TRUTH. SUCH COURAGE IS RARE TODAY. My compassion reaches out to this wounded but BRAVE SURVIVOR!
This explains his valid outburst at his sister Princess Diana’;s funeral, regarding the protective upbringing he demand for his beloved nephews William and Harry. No wonder he exploded his emotions and valiant feelings of responsibility for ‘his boys’, wanting to shelter them from any kind of abuse or neglect. Diana literally put her arms around her sons, and her devoted brother promised on the global stage to never let any harm come to them , on his watch… bless him, and thankyou for sharing, caring and saving others following your horrendous trauma. Now time to heal…
Mr. Charles Spencer is not only courageous but s true HERO. It takes a real man to not only face the pain but then to write about it. The abuser is a weak wimp and a coward. His book will be immensely successful. Thank you to the host for an open display of compassion and understanding. An extremely important interview.
I am so glad he is letting this out. He gets it out of his system and can help others.
He is an advocate for that eight year old boy he was and is a stand up guy as a brother and uncle in his family. A system that traumatizes the Physic's of children is never good. Thanks for
sharing his own experience and giving the space for others to share theirs.
His sister would be proud 🙏
For sure- IrishSuzy.
Absolutely.I'm French and have just discovered more lately about what the boarding-school system really stands for.I find that system simply appalling , it deprives children from early on of their psychological identity under the foul pretense that they "must behave and be strong " .
It makes one real sick to hear that the system was so corrupted and vile .Trauma and abuse of any kind should not exist in any type of schools.
I am French and used to be a school teacher with kids of eight and nine .I can't help thinking about my pupils (yound adults now ) in regard of all this.
I do think there are so-called traditions one country can simply do away with.
Brave man and this should help so many others and raise awareness!
Heartbreaking. So, so sad. Thank goodness he has spoken out. He’s beautifully spoken.
As a male survivor myself, I know what CSA can do to the mind and it's a horrific healing journey. To anyone that is a survivor regardless of gender, please know that you're not alone and you are heard and seen! My heart goes out to you Charles Spencer 😢♥️
So much COURAGE LIKE HIS SISTER.......THNK YOU
What a courageous man to speak up for his friend, for himself and for too many others: he is speaking up for me, too. Thank you, Charles Spencer!
Wishing Earl Spencer all the best moving forward. Totally heartbreaking story.
Brave of him to come forward and discuss such a sensitive and hurtful part of his life. I wish him peace. It's ironic the he suffered from some of the same things as his sister.
All the Spencer siblings had varying complications from a childhood in a dysfunctional family. While living in a manor house, surrounded with privilege might seem like a wonderful life, quite often it was not. Diana came to her marriage to Charles already damaged and disturbed. It was not all Prince Charles fault that the marriage didn't work. My sympathy to Charles, Diana, Jane and Sarah Spencer.
@@maryoleary2037very rich children are children first, which makes them very vulnerable.
The Spencer’s story is very public. I hope that this has been helpful in a broad way.
I just bought the book and heard it on Audible. Charles Spencer is an amazing writer and narrator, and I hope it was healing for him to do this. He does a wonderful job of taking us to those times, to the culture he grew up in , and to the strange world of the Aristocracy. I hope things have changed in the schools, but , sadly, the twisted ways of the Aristocracy continue . I do admire his hard work and plan to visit Althorp in the summer.
Another "Boarding School Survivor". I wish you all the best, sir. I am really so sorry about what happened to you and all the things you had to keep to yourself for so long.
@charleswhite758 Why not?
We, as a society, can only stop it by acknowledging it.
He is using his bitter experience to help others.
It's heroic.
Something has to be done about child abuse, the world is a very sick place, there are even fathers preying on their own kids, that is so so disgusting!!
Desperately sad. I never warmed to Charles Spencer, but what happened clearly had a horrific and lasting impact on him. It's such a good thing that he has written this book, and talks of the wider impact his suffering has had on his relationships - family, friends and partners. Incredibly sad.
So many cases of abuse on children in these educational and religious institutions, it’s horrendous. All the abusers should be locked up for life. Respect to Earl Spencer for sharing his story. I wonder did he ever confide in Diana about this abuse.
That criminal should be in prison. What is being done about it?
Well, they’re dead…
This is so sad. So sorry you and your friends had to go through this.
Yes Charles Spencer, Earl Spencer is such a brave man for telling his story that way he live it ❤🏴🇬🇧🇨🇦😇🫶💒🫶
I'm pretty sure that hundreds of voiceless kids in foster homes and in the system who are going through this right now
There are and the government hide this ! It’s going on now 😢
I attended a lovely private girls boarding school during my teenage years. It was heartbreaking to see children as young as 4 years old being sent away to school as a "full time boarder" which meant only seeing their family during school holidays.
Brave man ❤ what sick people
Sir, I think you are very brave to write about this terrible abuse that happened to you and your friends. It must be horrific to go through this at any age, let alone such a tender age of 7,8,9. Well done for speaking about this and writing the book. I'm sure it will help many people. God Bless You. Gill ❤️ ❤️
Their were many abused and still are
Catholics
@@isay207 Yep cults should be shut down but these people will just then go into law enforcement or the health system. Very sad.
Well done sir for talking about abuse for those who cannot do so
Great courage to speak out about this. It’s awful that he and many others went through at the hands of those who were supposed to be looking out for them. I can’t imagine how it must be like to be sent away to boarding school at such a young age. I always think it’s a cop-out by parents who simply want to get their children out of the way.
Thank you for telling your truth about your abuse. It will help so many people deal with their own abuse.
I’m half way through the book and I’ll likely finish it tomorrow. It’s made me more assertive to do something about what happened to me too as a child.
Boarding school is emotional neglect.
Sending children to boarding school is equivalent to putting them into an educational orphanage for 2/3 of every year, denying them ordinary family life, with all its ups and downs.
"Teaches them to stand on their own two feet" is commonly said.
There's a time for that and it isn"t childhood. They can be taught taking on responsibities while they at home in gradual.stages.
a very brave man.there is a sense of honesty,of sincere hope for the best,he is not seeking to harm,no vengence there.he is hurt but dignified in his terrible terrible hurt.
Heartbreaking 💔 Children are the most precious and should be treasured.
I was at a christian meeting and a word of knowledge to bring healing was brought, it was for men who had been sent to boarding school at 7 years old. About dozen fully grown men, fell into the eisle, and sobbed from the pit of their stomach, their very being. I have never heard anything so distressing, and such deep broken emotions in these men, from.such a young age. I WEPTED. I HAVE NEVER FORGOTTEN IT. 🌷
Time for the church to pay some compensation?
Much respect to you Sir for the interview. Lets hope there will be others who can be at peace with themselves off the back of this very important subject, as a result of these horrific experiences. Lovely man, it wasn't just about himself, but others he knew also.
Wow!!! Well-done so proud of you I believe all are in these sick schools
I am grateful for your persevering pursuit of your own healing, your authenticity, your courage in sharing your story...!!! I am a survivor of a boarding school, being sent away from my parents at age 5, back in 1963. (My parents were missionaries and this was the practice of the missionary organization.). Your experience has many horrid parallels to my own experience and those who went to school with me. A few years back a law suit was filed- although it fell through due to all sorts of complications and a financial renumeration was made- a group of us 'children' have reconnected and are sorting through our childhood and the fallout we have experienced. This is a good thing! Your book has been more validation and inspiration for us. Thank you!
He don't look too happy in that childhood pic. Poor baby. Adulthood isn't easy, childhood should be tons of fun.
@charleswhite758Children help out on farms and in all kinds of situations in every country.
So much respect for Charles Spencer.
God bless this brave gentleman 🙏
Well done for speaking out about abuse. I’m sorry that happened to you. So many people suffer and say nothing. It’s so important to give a light to how evil some humans are. Maybe they aren’t human. You are so brave. Godbless you Charles 🙏💙
What a brave gentleman, His honesty and niceness shines through.
there were many abused and still are
I was sexually abused at 16yrs and even at that age it was hard. I can't imagine what it would be like at such a young age!!! I completely understand NOT telling anyone though. I didn't talk about mine until I was in my 40's. You're kind of scared to at least I was. Again, at such a young age it must have been worse! I can't really imagine a child being sent off at such a young age. I can't imagine a parent wanting to send their children off ether. It's just all very mindblowing to me.
I was sent to my boarding school at age 12 because my mother was dying. It was a lovely, all-girls school in 1962. Only for a year though. I cried every single day I remember it well. The letters I wrote home were so sad to read I've destroyed them years ago. But here's the point, all the family kept from my mother that she was dying. When I came home in the summer I could hardly look at her, she looked so awful. Decades later, only then could I read her letter, she wrote "if I had known, I would never have sent her away". So, not all boarding schools were/are bad, but children were treated very differently back then.
I don't think that anyone is saying that ALL schools are bad. Infact, Charles later allowed his children to go to schools when they were old enough to choose for themselves. I don't think that he would have done that if ALL schools were bad. I think that some teachers abuse and sadly the many who are abused suffer from it. They suffer for years due to idiotic teachers who mistreated them. Sadly, some teachers are like that in all areas of the world but Charles is giving them the chance to be heard. Even those who aren't named and that takes courage. That says alot about him. It's hugely commendable but not about me and not about you. It's not saying the all schools are bad either. It's to speak of his story and help other survivors. Which I think is outstanding because some people ignore the truth. Some people feed off of pain and do their best to help it grow. Sometimes, justice is NEVER served. That too is NOT ALL cases though. You'd think that lawyers wouldn't want that but that's not always the case. At least those who have been abused have people like Charles who speak up for those who can't. @@nicolavowles2930
My heart breaks to hear your story, you are so brave bless you ❤
The damage continued, Diana also emerged from this bizarre family fragile and desperate. This man made the life of his first wife a total misery.
This made me weep.
What courage , huge Respect to Charles Spencer . This will help so many people .
I like this guys honesty.
I rarely buy books but I will buy this one. Always like Charles Spencer in his interviews. Great photographer too - he shares some beautiful pics on Twitter. The fact that his adult friend opened up to him first says a lot about him. I loved the interview on the family estate that he did ages ago. Bless him 🙏 💪
How supportive and courageous for Charles Spencer to share his childhood experience of abuse .. and truly how common it is 👌🏽
Oh dear 😮 ! Be strong
No child rich or poor should ever have to go through that.
Nick Duffell wrote two excellent books on this subject of abuse and trauma related to boarding schools!!
I use to be sad when I put my only child on a school bus in the morning. I cant imagine leaving her in a cold strange boarding school for months
It's a very sad story and I think u are so brave Mr Spencer I wish you so much peace and I wish you every happiness..😊
Great job for speaking up about such wicked abuse…..👏👏👏👏👏
Same thing happend to me at Llandaff Cathedral School Cardiff
This is where Harry gets his red hair from - the Spencers.
Charles Spencer is a brave and honourable man. Bravo for him exposing such vile abuse. I’m certain this book will help a lot of people.x
Whenever/every time i see this man I remember how he allegedly denied his sister a safe haven.
What monsters would send their children off to boarding school.
😢heart breaking
Painful to think he had a terrible childhood. I hope he’s happy now
Thats horrible, I'm very sorry!
You have to be brave to go public like he has. I’m glad he is going public, this is a serious and widespread problem.
He treated his first wife very badly. Perhaps this goes part way to explaining it.
He treated his second wife even worser. I dont really think the staffs treatment is the reason of why he has treated women badly, although he says it himself.
I think its the culture in bordingschools where upperclasschildren learn valures of eachother and by their nonexisting parents values. Its a norm in such families to be unfaithful and being occupied with themselves.
@@nonni139being a privileged pr-;k seems to have some level of acceptance. Being a horrible person to your partner is beginning- middle- end wrong. It’s intimate partner abuse. Calling this out in no way lessens the reality of the awful abuses he experienced as a child. Different rules for rich boys… and then the girls of rich families marrying them with a certain level of “societal” pressure to get on with it.
And yes those crazy double standards throughout the ages, the illegitimate children of high ranking royals had jobs within the palaces, that’s a smattering of the ones that were known about.
Yup. Boys schools, in general. Check out Parktown Boys High School...in South Africa 🇿🇦. Thank you, Sam Cowan, for writing the book
My son, a product, has schizoaffective disorder, and is seriously suicidal. He's 25.
Some dream education for a little boy how wrong can it be.. keep your kids with you .
Thank you for sharing with us Angel
Wee George is a carbon copy of this man.
Poor Charles. Im so so sorry.
I agree young children don't say things like bullying either.😢😮
Child abuse just like elder and animal abuse is done by the very worst sub human bullies!!
Children continue to be exposed to pedophiles in high places who teach children without credentials and background checks. Vigilance is necessary at all times. Protect the children. ❤❤❤❤
The story of legalised abuse that Charles tells happened to so many, not only at elite British boarding schools but at orphanages and residential schools throughout the world. Many in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Kenya, India, Australia, Canada and other countries endured similar experiences. Vulnerable children left in the ‘care’ of those that had no business being in the vicinity of children and adolescents. What is now known as ‘Boarding School Syndrome’ is very real. My husband, like Charles, boarded from 8 - 18 at an elite school in England, as did my brother and all the males in my family. Until my husband was 12 he saw his parents once a year. They were busy building the empire. The repercussions of early boarding are far reaching and destructive. How can one possibly know how to be a partner or parent when one has grown up in an institution? And yet these men and women go out into the world having been told that they are privileged and with a fantasy of what a relationship involves. With a fantasy of how to be a parent. Quite simply, young children are not supposed to be emotionally independent and brought up by strangers. Yes, early boarding is neglect on every level but let’s not forget what it says about the parents who send their children away to be vulnerable and at the mercy of strangers.
So sad 😢
Very brave...respect him 100%
Clear sober and authentic.
STORIES LIKE THIS MAKE MY BLOOD BOIL!! SO MANY HORRORS FOR CHILDREN WHO GREW UP IN BOARDING SCHOOLS 🥹!
‘Something in me, died’…. that is THE INNOCENCE THAT THESE GROWNUPS STOLE FROM INNOCENT CHILDREN! It makes you wonder Where is a ‘loving god’ to protect them 🥺!
I was always threatened with boarding school when i was naughty so that shows my parents thought it was awful
praise you
I commend his bravery and steadfastness to speak his truth. I hope it encourages others who have suffered, and deserve to live their lives to the fullest.
Likewise, I hope it deters others who would seek to make false claims about such depravity. It’s so terribly sad & damaging all round. I catch my breath every time I hear new rumours of his niece-in-law Meghan, and the depths to which she’ll sink to gain sympathy (I fear the day her father dies and the start of her peddling a new narrative of “truth” about what he did to her in childhood). I hope the bare sincerity of Harry’s uncle helps Harry to steer his wife in a healthier direction for both of them. Authenticity is Charles Spencer’s trademark - you can’t fake it. And I hope they at least learn that.
Stop
hurting
others.
I feel sick listening to this. How he can talk so logically is beyond me. I don’t know how he has the stuff to be so together.
Look at his red hair as a child and people wonder about Harry’s hair colour.!
I wonder why he doesn’t say the name of the school
He does in the book, and the school is named at the end.
❤ to Charles Spencer
So sad
I would never send my kids to boarding school…my mother went to boarding school it did not do her any good..
Charles Spencer is an uncle that Harry and William should be proud of.
Maybe look up how he treated his stepmother or his first wife!
brave.