Princess Diana's brother Charles says his memoir opened 'floodgates' for other abuse survivors

Princess Diana's younger brother Charles Spencer is opening up about the impact his revelations about sexual abuse at a U.K. boarding school has had on his peers.

Spencer, who opened up about the harrowing ordeal during a promotional appearance on NBC News earlier this month for his memoir, "A Very Private School," told BBC Radio Northampton on Tuesday that the past two weeks have been "very tough... and emotionally exhausting" as he's relived the abuse.

"I didn't realize what I was taking on (writing the book), but it has ultimately been very good for me and I have come out on the other side a happier person," he said, adding that his "inbox filled" with other people sharing their stories of abuse at boarding schools.

"It's like the floodgates opened, I've never seen anything like it," Spencer said of the memoir's reception. "It's had a real knock-on effect, far greater than I dared hope, so if it's done that, it's served its purpose."

On NBC News' "Today," Spencer revealed he "sexually abused by a woman when I was a child."

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"We were locked away, we were like prisoners," he told correspondent Cynthia McFadden. "We were prey to very bad people's worst instincts."

In a statement, the prestigious school attended by Spencer, Maidwell Hall, told the "Today" show that it has notified local authorities to investigate possible crimes against children and also encouraged victims to come forward.

Spencer also shared some of the people who have reached out to him in an interview with The Guardian published Sunday. A friend's wife "got in touch with me when news of the book came out to say: 'I just want you to know, he went to a place like Maidwell and had the most appalling time. He’s had terrible depression over the years but I’ve never seen him so happy as when he heard you were bringing a book out about all this stuff,'" he recalled.

The British podcaster and author added: "Someone else I know was a guy who was terribly bullied, three years older than me. And he wrote to me a while ago and said: 'You writing this book has let me tell my wife for the first time what I went through at Maidwell. We've been married for 30 years – and we just spent the last hour crying together.'"

Spencer also told McFadden he first shared the abuse to a "therapist when I was about 42" after the therapist asked Spencer to whisper one thing he had "never told anyone."

Charles Spencer sent his memoir to one of his abusers

Diana's younger brother names some of his abusers in the memoir, a choice he mulled over for a long time, he told The Guardian. "I thought long and hard about that. And in the end I thought, actually, they deserve to be named. Nobody’s going to pin the crimes of the father on the children or the grandchildren. The point is, very sadly, their fathers did terrible things," he said.

Princess Diana's brotherCharles Spencer reveals sexual abuse at British boarding school

One of Spencer's abusers, referred to as Goffie in the book, is still alive. The author sent him a copy of the memoir, he revealed. "He’s very old now. But I just want him to know."

Since Maidwell called for local authorities to get involved, Northamptonshire Police told the BBC they are "working to proactively investigate" the allegations by Spencer.

Contributing: Jay Stahl

If you or someone you know is a victim of child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org.