Vale Diana – Princess of Wales

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Diana, Princess of Wales is remembered for her winsomeness. It has been twelve long years since she died. It seems just yesterday she was laid to rest on a floral island. What was so unique about this majestic lady? How did she capture the imagination? This is Diana’s story.

The Princess of Wails

This was the most telling headline of her life. Those black words screamed the loneliness she must have experienced at times. Later, images of a lonely divorcee invoked that headline. Why did she weep? Was it solitude?  Her ways challenged the establishment. Being gorgeous, fun and alive blew like a fresh zephyr through the House of Windsor then. Diana was named, by Prime Minister Tony Blair on her death, as “the People’s Princess.” Her betters from The Royal establishment seemed just like an old black and white photo compared with Diana’s full-colour freshness.

Dodi, My Love

Diana died the night of Thursday, August the 28th, 1997 in a horrific car crash with her lover, Dodi Al-Fayed, at her side. That she was to give issue to Dodi’s child was the reason why, conspiracy-theorists claim, the Princess fell to foul play. Hearsay, rumour, gossip – it followed Diana all her days – until those allegations seemed the very gas in that car crash of death. Who knows whether she was to live the future with Dodi Al-Fayed? Who cares? That the Princess was finally happy, freed from shackles real or imagined, was what mattered. Diana was at last ready to begin her life an independent woman after her marriage had crumbled. Why, that Mercedes-mash is still considered deliberate without a shred of evidence. It was simply a sad accident that snatched someone fabulous from us.

Vanity Fair

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The last photo shoot of Diana, published in the American Vanity Fair Magazine, twelve weeks before the car crash showed a liberated Princess, happy and free. Those unforgettable portraits of Diana are how many care to remember this lady – strong, joyous and alive. At thirty-seven Diana was ready to roar. Those same photos, currently on display at Australia’s National Portrait Gallery, strike a sweet chord and still bring so much élan. They depict Diana as herself, without title, tiara or turgid appointment. Those portraits alone are a true image of how we will ever recall her – vivacious.

Fingers to the Bone

When Diana, Princess of Wales, walked she was the champion of all. She visited the homeless, the ill and anyone in need. She sailed the Seven Seas for so many. One of her last campaigns was exposing deadly landmines. Who can ever forget the images of our Princess tiptoeing across a field peppered with dread devices? One false move and it could have been one of those that ended her days. Yet, because of it the world is a now safer. It was her way and anything she did received massive support.

Her Legacy

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After twelve long years what can we say Diana’s life achieved? She was so vital for:

·      Using her power for good. Wherever she went and whomever she touched achieved so much. She spent her days changing the world more than any person in living memory.

·      Being human. People could relate to Diana. She was, “real.” She didn’t look as if she was some grand, grimy, gilt-framed, flaking, old oil painting on the walls of a dinghy, dead palace. Diana shone before you, fresh and alive and was someone you could relate to on a truly intimate level

·      Being totally ravishing. The way she moved, the way she dressed and the way she looked; perfect. Perfect is good because the world is tainted daily by ugliness in all its beastly forms. Diana was simply gorgeous.

Vale Diana! Princess of Wales, we will always miss you.

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