LONDON
(Reuters) - From TV documentaries and the private memories of her sons to a
slew of new "revelations" and renewed theories about her death,
Britain's Princess
Diana is once again front page news 20 years after she died.
Diana was
killed at age 36 on Aug. 31, 1997 along with her lover Dodi al-Fayed when a
limousine carrying them crashed in a Paris tunnel as it sped away from
paparazzi giving chase on motorbikes.
The first
wife of heir-to-the-throne Prince Charles, Diana was the glittering princess at
the center of a royal soap opera played out in the glare of the media, making
her probably the most recognized woman around the world.
Her passing
prompted the biggest public outpouring of grief seen in Britain in recent times,
and few since have captivated the world like she did.
"There'll
never be anyone else like Diana," said Ingrid Seward, editor-in-chief of
Majesty magazine and author of "Diana: The Last Word".
Previous
anniversaries of her death have gone by with little fanfare, suggesting that
the "People's Princess", as she was dubbed by then-British Prime
Minister Tony Blair, had perhaps lost some of her allure and relevance.
But, with
her sons Prince William and Harry to the fore, the 20th anniversary has seen
her dominate front pages of newspapers as she did in her prime as the world's
most photographed woman.
"There
was a period in the early 2000s where very little was heard of Diana,"
commented Ken Wharfe, her ex-royal protection officer. He said her two sons' desire
to continue her work by supporting causes such as helping Aids sufferers, the
homeless and combating landmines, had made her relevant again.
The princes
have also been increasingly willing to speak about the trauma of her death and
its lasting emotional impact.
In
broadcasts aired over the last six months, William, 35, said the shock of
losing his mother still lingered while Harry, 32, revealed he had sought
counseling in his late 20s to help deal with the grief.
"She
still is our mum," Harry said in an intimate TV documentary entitled
"Diana, Our Mother: Her Life and Legacy". "Of course, as a son I
would say this, she was the best mum in the world. She smothered us with love,
that's for sure."
Ashley
Gething, the documentary's director, told Reuters he was impressed with Diana's
achievements. "What amazed me was what she'd actually done... All these
enormous issues like championing the homeless, often in the face of criticism
of politicians and editors of national newspapers."
DARK DAYS
Almost 10
million Britons tuned into that documentary, while another TV program
"Diana In Her Own Words", aired earlier this month, was watched by
3.5 million Britons, giving broadcaster Channel 4 its highest viewing figures
for a year.
That program
featured videoed conversations, never shown before on British TV, of Diana
speaking candidly with her speech therapist about her sex life with Prince
Charles and her sorrow at the spectacular collapse of her marriage.
Similar
shows have been aired or are planned in the United States, where many have been
gripped by Diana's story, from her fairytale marriage to Charles in 1981 to
their subsequent separation and bitter divorce. More than 33 million Americans
tuned in to watch her funeral in September 1997.
The days
after her death were some of the darkest in Queen Elizabeth's 65-year reign and
some monarchists fear the attention lavished on Diana will rekindle resentment
towards the House of Windsor.
Many Britons
were angered at how Diana was ostracized by the royal family after her 1996
divorce from Charles, with Camilla Parker Bowles, Charles's lover who later
became his wife, a particular focus of enmity.
With renewed
focus on the popular Diana, an ICM poll for the Sun newspaper this month found
that just 22 percent of respondents wanted Charles, 68, to be the next king
while more than half wanted the next monarch to be his son William.
It also
showed that 36 percent of the 2,000 people questioned felt Camilla, 70, should
be Princess Consort and not queen. Only 27 percent backed her having the regal
title.
"Anything
retrospective can open old wounds and does open old wounds," Seward said,
although she believed the impact would soon wane. "People forget quickly
and I don't think it has any long lasting effect."
Instead she
and other royal commentators say Diana's lasting impact was a royal family more
in touch with the public.
"This
program of bringing the royal family into the 21st century is being continued
by her two sons who, for my part, are the future of the British monarchy,"
Wharfe said.
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