Today is the 12th Anniversary of the death of Lady Diana Spencer, who died as a result of injuries sustained in a car wreck in the Pont de l’Alma road tunnel in Paris. Her companion Dodi Fayed and the driver of the car, Henri Paul, were pronounced dead at the scene of the accident. Fayed’s bodyguard, Trevor Rees-Jones, was the only survivor.
An eighteen-month French judicial investigation concluded in 1999 that the crash was caused by Paul, who lost control of the car at high speed while intoxicated and under the influence of antidepressants. In other words, the most famous woman of her time was a victim of a drunk driving accident, a form of death I associate with over-indulged celebutards and teenagers.
I recall watching the events unfold back in August/September 1997 and although I didn’t have a teary-deary moment I couldn’t help but be moved and mesmerized by the events. Since then I’ve watched numerous documentaries focused on Di’s life and death, most of them broadcast around the anniversary of the accident. That is until today. We have access to hundreds of channels through our cable TV provider and apart from a one-hour documentary on the crash, which aired last night on CBC Newsworld, there’s nothing out there. I’m very disappointed.
I’m a historian and a monarchist. Diana’s place in history has been immortalized by the events of her liferather than her accomplishments but her importance cannot be denied. The same must be said about her impact on the British Royal Family. She was known as the People’s Princess and was the most popular member of The Firm since the glamorous Elizabeth II assumed the throne in 1952. Diana popularized the Monarchy unlike her husband, who never could.
The public’s reaction to Diana’s death was massive and worldwide. Over a million people lined the four-mile route from Kensington Palace to Westminster Abbey. Outside the Abbey and in Hyde Park crowds watched and listened to proceedings on giant outdoor screens and huge speakers as privileged guests filed in. The televised funeral is estimated to have been watched by 2.5 billion people.
After the ceremony, the coffin was driven to the family estate at Althorp in Northamptonshire and mourners cast flowers at the funeral procession for almost the entire length of its journey. In a private ceremony, Diana was buried on the Althorp estate on an island in the middle of a lake. In her casket she wears a black long-sleeved wrap dress designed by Catherine Walker, and is clutching a rosary in her hands.
Lady Diana Spencer is still a popular figure and Dodi’s father Mohamed Al-Fayed still claims the crash was a result of a conspiracy orchestrated by MI6 on the instructions of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. So why was the anniversary of her death virtually ignored by the media? Perhaps they felt there have been too many high profile deaths lately and we’ve grown tired of the morbid? Considering the amount of violence offered up to us everday via movies and television I doubt this is true. Perhaps the networks have finally allowed Lady Di to rest in peace, but I doubt that too. I suspect it was simply an oversight.
Research: Angelina Pieros
Sources: Getty Images, The Daily Mail, Wikipedia, wwwcatherinewalker.com, www.princess-diana.com
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Has the Press Allowed Diana to Die?
An eighteen-month French judicial investigation concluded in 1999 that the crash was caused by Paul, who lost control of the car at high speed while intoxicated and under the influence of antidepressants. In other words, the most famous woman of her time was a victim of a drunk driving accident, a form of death I associate with over-indulged celebutards and teenagers.
I recall watching the events unfold back in August/September 1997 and although I didn’t have a teary-deary moment I couldn’t help but be moved and mesmerized by the events. Since then I’ve watched numerous documentaries focused on Di’s life and death, most of them broadcast around the anniversary of the accident. That is until today. We have access to hundreds of channels through our cable TV provider and apart from a one-hour documentary on the crash, which aired last night on CBC Newsworld, there’s nothing out there. I’m very disappointed.
I’m a historian and a monarchist. Diana’s place in history has been immortalized by the events of her life
rather than her accomplishments but her importance cannot be denied. The same must be said about her impact on the British Royal Family. She was known as the People’s Princess and was the most popular member of The Firm since the glamorous Elizabeth II assumed the throne in 1952. Diana popularized the Monarchy unlike her husband, who never could.
After the ceremony, the coffin was driven to the family estate at Althorp in Northamptonshire and mourners cast flowers at the funeral procession for almost the entire length of its journey. In a private ceremony, Diana was buried on the Althorp estate on an island in the middle of a lake. In her casket she wears a black long-sleeved wrap dress designed by Catherine Walker, and is clutching a rosary in her hands.
Lady Diana Spencer is still a popular figure and Dodi’s father Mohamed Al-Fayed still claims the crash was a result of a conspiracy orchestrated by MI6 on the instructions of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. So why was the anniversary of her death virtually ignored by the media? Perhaps they felt there have been too many high profile deaths lately and we’ve grown tired of the morbid? Considering the amount of violence offered up to us everday via movies and television I doubt this is true. Perhaps the networks have finally allowed Lady Di to rest in peace, but I doubt that too. I suspect it was simply an oversight.
Research: Angelina Pieros
Sources: Getty Images, The Daily Mail, Wikipedia, wwwcatherinewalker.com, www.princess-diana.com
Tags: Lady Diana Spencer, media