Two decades on, world weeps again for Diana

Diana, Princess of Wales, had united the world in mourning 20 years ago. This time, it was the virtual universe of social media that spoke as one.

Elizabeth Emanuel, who had in 1981 designed her wedding dress, wrote on Twitter: “Thinking of the wonderful times we spent with Diana and the great joy she brought into our lives and all those who knew her.”

Ms Emanuel posted a picture of herself and her former husband, David, tending to the train of the bridal gown inside St Paul’s Cathedral.

Sir Elton John, who performed an alternative lyric to his song, Candle In The Wind at Diana’s funeral, posted a picture on Instagram of the two of them together, his arm around her.

“Twenty years ago today, the world lost an angel,” he wrote.

On the 10th anniversary of her death, Sir Elton had opened and closed a concert at Wembley Stadium, organised by the Duke of Cambridge and his brother in memory of their mother.

Prince Harry later revealed that Candle In The Wind brought him almost to tears.

“Elton John’s song was incredibly emotional,” he said. “That was part of this whole trigger system which nearly brought me to the point of crying in public, which I’m glad I didn’t do.”

The princess’s former head chef, Darren McGrady, went on Twitter to recall her caring nature.

“When Princess Diana heard I had become a father, she sent this note and flowers to the hospital,” he tweeted. The handwritten message congratulated him on the “safe arrival of your little lady”.

As well-wishers turned up with bouquets, photographs and other ephemera, the gates to Diana’s former home, Kensington Palace, became a shrine, just as they had in 1997.

“I was very, very touched when Prince William and Prince Harry came to the golden gates and looked at the tributes and pointed at the pictures,” said John Loughrey, who was watching from the crowd.

Dickie Arbiter, a former press secretary to the Queen, Charles and Diana, was also outside Kensington Palace.

“Diana’s legacy is William and Harry,” he said.

“They’re carrying on her work. She was a brilliant parent, Charles was a brilliant parent.

“They got the best of both worlds, the high street from Diana and they got the countryside and environment from their dad.

“So they’re well-rounded, well capable of doing what is required of them, and they are her legacy, they’re carrying on her work.”

Diana has been said to have been a boss who appreciated her staff, and Mr Arbiter said he had been a beneficiary of her generosity.

“I suppose I remember the personal touch,” he said. “She gave me a 50th birthday party in her apartment.

“A lunch with party poppers and helium balloons - she pulled out all the stops.

“There was a birthday cake in the shape of the old brick phone, because I always had a mobile phone wherever we went.”

The princess’s friend, Rosa Monckton described Diana as a “truly extraordinary woman”.

“She was everything to everybody,” she said. “She broke down the walls. She busted the myth of being a fairytale princess.

“I think that given the life she had, when you think what she had to overcome, and all of this in the public eye, I think she was a truly extraordinary woman.

“Very damaged, very flawed, as we all are, but underneath it all, this incredible resilience.”

Diana was killed, along with her boyfriend, Dodi Fayed, in a midnight crash in Paris as paparazzi pursued their limousine.