Bride-to-be gets Diana's engagement ring

He said he gave Miss Middleton the blue sapphire and diamond heirloom in tribute to both women, two "very special" people to him.

"It's my mother's engagement ring so I thought it was quite nice because obviously she's not going to be around to share any of the fun and excitement of it all," he said. "This was my way of keeping her close to it all."

William's father, the Prince of Wales, gave the ring to Diana in February 1981. It contains an oval sapphire surrounded by a cluster of 14 diamonds.

Diana chose the ring, which cost 28,000 at the time, from a selection presented to her by jewellers Garrard. It was not designed especially for her, which meant any member of the public could buy the same ring from the jewellers' catalogue.