I was just a little shaver when Charles married Diana but I do recall Robert Morley (does anyone remember him?) was a commentator, for ABC I think. Utterly ridiculous. That's network news for ya.
I agree with you about BBC America. As an alternative, may I suggest The Learning Channel. They have had some lead-in programs that were interesting and informed, without the People magazine-E!-TMZ tone set by so many of the other channels.