Twenty years after Princess Diana’s death, there are still plenty of ways to learn more about the late royal and her lasting legacy.
This week marks 20 years since Princess Diana’s life was cut short in a Paris car crash. The beloved royal fascinated both the people and the press during her very public life and, perhaps even more so, after her tragic death.
There’s a lot to unpack when it comes to the princess — her charitable causes, her rocky marriage, her impact on the British monarchy, the conspiracy theories surrounding her death, what her death says about fame and access — and in honor of the anniversary, everybody’s getting in on the conversation. This year, and recent weeks especially, have seen a number of documentaries, specials, and features looking back on Diana and her legacy. Whether you can’t get enough or find yourself overwhelmed by the coverage, here are three ways to better understand and appreciate the late People’s Princess:
Diana, Our Mother: Her Life and Legacy
If you’re having trouble choosing between anniversary specials and have a soft spot for Diana’s sons, the princes William and Harry, Diana, Our Mother: Her Life and Legacy on HBO may be worth your time. The heartfelt documentary, which premiered earlier this summer, features, for the first time, the boys reflecting back on Diana as a mom, the role she cherished most.
Diana: Her True Story
In 1992, author Andrew Morton published a much talked-about book, Diana: Her True Story, that relied on several anonymous sources to tell Diana’s raw, authentic experience. It wasn’t until five years after Diana’s death that Morton revealed it was actually the princess herself who’d been Morton’s secret source, along with several close confidantes. In the introduction to his new 25th anniversary edition of the biography, Morton even cites a letter Diana wrote him thanking him for telling her story.
Heads Together
Once you’ve filled up on backstory, you can also learn more about how Diana’s life is still making an impact on the UK and the world today. One thing Diana was known for was bucking the royal system of being stiff and formal at all times. Diana was real and open in a way a British princess hadn’t been before. She clearly passed that trait along to her sons as last year, William and Harry, along with Princess Kate, announced the launch of their new mental health initiative, Heads Together. The project encourages people, soldiers particularly, to be more open in talking about mental health struggles, and the princes used their own struggles in dealing with their mom’s death as a jumping off point for others to share. You can learn more at headstogether.org.uk.
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