We'll always have Eastbourne

It would be useful to know when Minnow Films recorded their interview with Richard Ayre, who was the BBC's Controller of Editorial Policy at the time of the Panorama/Martin Bashir interview with Princess Diana. 

It was woven into last night's second 50-minute part of their documentary for ITV, "The Revenge of a Princess". The episode was clearly recut to to focus on the testimony of former BBC graphic artist Martin Wiessler, still in an uncomfortable state over the emerging clarity that he was scapegoated, 24 years ago, for creating mock-ups of bank statements at the behest of Martin Bashir. 

Richard Ayre recalled viewing the Diana interview pre-transmission in a makeshift edit suite set up in an Eastbourne Hotel. His testimony was that Tony Hall, John Birt and himself were resolute champions of this journalistic enterprise "that might bring down the Royal Family or the BBC". 

Mr Ayre doesn't seem to have been directly involved in the post-transmission investigation into Mr Bashir's commissioning of fake bank statements and their use.  But was his interview with ITV recorded before Earl Spencer made public his notes of other levers pulled used by Mr Bashir to make his interview request stronger ? One hopes that any Controller of Editorial Policy would immediately reach for the guidelines on 'Fair Dealings with Contributors'....