On the evening of August 30th, 1997, Princess Diana  – known far and wide as The People’s Princess for her kindness, generosity and unshakable connection to both commoner and aristocrat alike – was the victim of a high speed car crash in the Pont de l’Alma tunnel in Paris.

Diana, 36, was pronounced dead in the early hours of August 31st, alongside her then partner Dodi Fayed and driver Henri Paul. 

A firestorm of celebrity-hounding, blood-sucking paparazzi had chased the couple’s black Mercedes Benz from the Ritz Hotel in Paris to their inevitable fate against the 13th pillar of the Pont d’Alma tunnel. 

It was a tragic end to a beloved and – realistically – deeply troubled life for a figure who seemingly never fit the mold of the prim, proper, and perfectly conformed British Royal.

Diana, rather, was a trend-setter, a norm-buster, opting to connect to the people rather than stand aloft from them. 25 years following her horrifically unjust end, The People’s Princess is still looked at in deity-like status, with fascination on her life, loss and legacy still at a fever pitch all these years removed from her final moments.

Discovering Diana

Fascination has not wained in the two and a half decades since Diana Spencer left this mortal coil. Rather, it has only grown. In the last three years, for example, Diana has been immortalized in film and television, with the recently acclaimed HBO max documentary The Princess buoyed by stunning portrayals in The Crown by Emma Corrin (and soon to be Elizabeth Debicki), as well as an Oscar nominated-turn by Kristen Stewart in the biopic Spencer.

A Breathe Of Fresh Air

Many royal pundits have viewed the entry of Diana into the royal household as a breathe of fresh air for the, at times, stuffy and seemingly unreachable British monarchs. The wedding of Diana and Charles, for example, was viewed by 17 million viewers around the globe. But it would not stop there.

Something as simple as opting for round tables as opposed to tradition regal banquet halls, and eating standing up in the kitchen, were down-to-earth and very human qualities that endeared Diana to Britain and beyond, earning her the title ‘The People’s Princess. It has been said that Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle have taken up some of Diana’s trait of bucking royal norms.

Diana’s Pride

By all accounts, Diana Spencer had no love in her life more profound than that for her sons, William and Harry. Royal observers have often speculated that, if she were still alive today, Diana would be a doting grandmother to what would be her five grandchildren, Prince George, Prince Louis, Princess Charlotte and Archie and Lilibet. 

Giving Back

Charitable organizations were always close to the heart of Princess Diana. Among her many philanthropic endeavours over the years, Diana’s Lady Diana Foundation continues on today with the mission to continue the Samaritan deeds of the People’s Princess, with a fond memory of her bright personality and the ability to unify people in a single cause – the development and prosperity of humankind as a whole, as per the organization itself. A continued nod to her kind heart.

A Symbol of Life

There are monuments and symbols dedicated to the life and lasting love and legacy of Princess Diana across from globe. Just last year one particularly poignant memorial was erected in London. Prince’s William and Harry gathered in the Sunken Garden at Kensington Palace in commemoration of what would have been their mother’s 60th birthday. 

The statue unveiling, which was sculpted by Ian Rank-Broadley, “aimed to reflect her warmth, elegance and energy, in addition to her work and the effect she had on many people,” according to spokespersons at Kensington Garden. 

This is just one of many gestures and tokens that reflects the warm, laughter and love Diana Spencer brought to everyone she met throughout her brief life.

It seems the fascination with the People’s Princess, Diana Spencer, only grows with each passing year.

Captivating royal watchers and the general public unlike any before or since, Diana was the epitome of class and a welcome breath of fresh air to the seemingly cold and aloof monarchy of her time.

A year ahead of the 25th anniversary of her untimely and tragic death, and on the year she would be celebrating her milestone 60th birthday, The Herald looks back at the life of England’s Rose, giving readers some little known and unique facts about the royal who continues to melt hearts two decades after her unexpected end.

BABY DIANA

Diana was the fourth of five children, having two sisters; Sarah (Lady Sarah McCorquodale) and Jane (Lady Jane Fellowes), younger brother Charles (Earl Spencer), and brother John, who sadly passed away mere hours removed from his birth.

A MESSY DIVORCE

Diana’s parents, Frances Shand Kydd and Edward John Spencer divorced when she was just seven years old. The affair was said to be tumultuous and the relationship unhappy, with Andrew Morton writing in Diana, Her True Story that infidelity and physical abuse were at the heart of the separation.

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DIANA THE DANCER

Princess Diana’s dream gig didn’t involve all the pomp and circumstance of royalty. Rather, young Diana Spencer wanted to be a ballerina. Problem was, she grew too tall for the demanding life of a dancer.

UNDERACHIEVER

Diana may have come across as incredibly knowledgeable and witty – and she was – but that didn’t mean she didn’t struggle academically.

Homeschooled until the age of nine and then a boarding school attendee, Diana failed her O-Level exams on two separate occasions before dropping out at the age of 16.

DIANA’S DUTIES

Before meeting Prince Charles and setting in motion the course of her life, Diana worked numerous jobs, including a nanny and a school teacher, earning as little as $5 an hour.

When she would wed Charles in 1981, she would become the first royal bride to ever have had a paying job until becoming engaged to an heir.

SISTER TRAP

Did you know that Diana was not the first Spencer to catch the eye of Prince Charles? No. He’d date Sister Sarah for a brief period in the late 1970s before he was introduced – by Sarah no less – to his bride-to-be.

12 DATES OF DIANA

Diana and Charles only met 12 times before becoming engaged in 1981.

Diana was just 19, while the Prince was 32. Charles was allegedly pressured into the engagement, particularly by his father Prince Philip.

DRESS FOR THE AGES

Diana’s now-iconic ivory taffeta wedding dress, designed by the husband-and-wife team of David and Elizabeth Emanuel, was record-breaking.

The extravagant gown boasted 10,000 pearls and a 25-foot-long train.

DIANA’S VOWS

Diana would become something of a groundbreaker early on into her royal union with Prince Charles, omitting the long-held tradition of saying she would “obey” her husband in the Book of Common Prayer.

Daughter-in-laws Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle would follow suit decades later.

BIRTH OF A ROYAL

Diana would continue to produce a variety of firsts for the royal crew, giving birth to Prince William, and later Harry, at St. Mary’s Hospital. This seemingly normal act would make William the first future monarch to be born in a hospital.

GIVING THANKS

Diana was renowned for her kindness and generosity.

No surprise then that the People’s Princess was said to have written thousands of thank you cards in her day.

Sources: insider & harper bazaar

The extraordinary rise and unthinkable end of Diana Spencer, the People’s Princess, has been the subject of all manner of media exploitation.
From dish-all-dirt tabloids to bios and tell-alls and of course, takes both in homage and crudely provocative on the big and small screens, many have tried to capitalize on the seemingly endless fame of Princess Diana.

The latest silver screen retelling of the tragic life and times of Lady Di comes in the form of Spencer, a film from director Pablo Larrain that will see Kristen Stewart step into the role of Diana.

Scheduled to premiere at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, buzz has already begun to circulate on the project, with Stewart herself sharing in press interviews that the shoes of the People’s Princess have not been worn lightly.

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‘I CAN’T STOP’

“She means a lot to me – but it’s all relatively new because I’m from L.A. and I didn’t grow up in England. Before this, she was not something that was at the forefront of my mind, because I lived so far away from it all. Now, I can’t stop thinking about her,” Stewart shared.

“I often wonder what she’d think about what’s going on in the world right now. To be honest, I’ve now consumed pretty much all there is to consume in terms of videos and interviews. I’ve watched everything that you could hear or see. I even go to sleep with it on.”

Elsewhere, in the stranger-than-fiction award-winning royal drama The Crown, a pair of actresses will bring Diana to life, with Emma Corrin having wowed audiences with her turn as the young Spencer, thrust into a world that would soon overwhelm her.

DIANA’S VULNERABILITY

“I ended up having this overwhelming appreciation for her complexity,” Corrin told The Guardian. “I’m fascinated by the young Diana. We all have an understanding of what she was like as she got older, but her childhood… How isolated and lonely she felt for a lot of it. She was plucked from this lovely, warm situation with her friends in her flat in Earl’s Court into this very austere world … I went into every working day thinking about this swinging scale of vulnerability and strength. Vulnerability wasn’t the entirety of her. She endured an incredible amount.”

And while Corrin’s turn as a young and perhaps naive Diana earned critical praise and awards attention, veteran starlet Elizabeth Debicki has been tapped to take over the role for the fifth and sixth seasons of the award-winning drama.

“Princess Diana’s spirit, her words and her actions live in the hearts of so many,” Debicki shared in a statement. “It is my true privilege and honour to be joining this masterful series, which has had me absolutely hooked from episode one.”

Then, now and forever, the lavish lifestyle and caring demeanour of Princess Diana will continue to captivate the masses. We’d bet the crown jewels that these ladies will not be the last to carry on her memory on the big screen.

For more by Dillon Collins, click here