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Princess Diana’s death at just 36 is one of those moments forever etched in our memories.
This weekend marks 28 years since the People’s Princess died in a car crash — alongside her boyfriend Dodi Fayed and their driver — in Paris. Now, the “Extra” team that covered the story back then is looking back at the tragedy and how the news unfolded. Watch.
On August 31, 1997, confirmation of her death rocketed around the globe, stunning everyone and sparking an outpouring of grief.
At the time, “Extra” host Maureen O’Boyle and a team of correspondents were on the ground in England.
Looking back, Maureen recalls, “The big question for us as a team of journalists was, ‘How are we going to convey this emotion to people so far away at home?,’ because it was so thick, so intense.”
From Westminster Abbey to St. James and Buckingham Palace to that infamous tunnel in Paris and the controversies that followed, “Extra” was there.
The news of the day surrounded the devastating photos that emerged of the car, criticism for how closely the paparazzi followed Diana, and the outpouring of grief and sea of flowers outside the palaces.
Maureen shared, “The word that she had died in this crash being chased by the paparazzi just felt like such a tragic end for someone whose life was complicated, surely, but she did not need to die that young.”
“Extra’s” royals expert at the time, Elaine Lipworth, had joined Maureen in London.
Speaking with “Extra” today, she recalled, “It just seemed unfathomable, and the concept of fake news didn’t exist at the time, but I was completely sure it wasn’t true.”
She went on, “The sound of people sobbing and rustling the feet as more people came together and delivered notes, teddy bears, prayers, altars. It was unlike anything I’d ever seen.”
Even in those first hours, there was concern for young William and Harry.
Back in 1997, Maureen had asked Elaine, “How does the death of Princess Diana affect her two sons?”
Elaine replied, “It means that both of them are being thrust into the limelight even more.”
The public watched the solemn and sad procession as William and Harry followed their mother’s casket through the streets of London.
It was only recently that Harry opened up about that fateful night, revealing on “60 Minutes” he waited until he was in his twenties to look at the crash photos of his mom.
He explained he wanted “proof that she was in the car.”
Of course, so much has happened since Diana’s death.
Her two sons got married and started families, and then their relationship ruptured after Harry and his wife Meghan Markle stepped down as senior royals and left the U.K.
Harry’s fears for his family’s well-being were front and center in the couple’s sit-down interview with Oprah in 2021.
He said at the time, “When I’m talking about history repeating itself, I’m talking about my mother.”
And in the 2021 Apple TV+ series “The Me You Can’t See,” he revealed, “The clicking of cameras and flashing of cameras makes my blood boil, it makes me angry… takes me back to what happened to my mum… and what I experienced when I was a kid.”
What Princess Diana Would Think of William & Harry’s Ongoing Feud
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“Good Morning America’s” Michael Strahan asked Harry the question on everyone’s mind in 2023: “How would your mom feel about your relationship with your brother now?”
The Prince said, “I think she would be sad.”
Elaine, who is now a senior content writer at Thrive Global, weighed in on how she thinks Diana would have reacted to the rift.
Lipworth said, “I’m quite sure that Diana would advise her sons to get over their differences and to reunite, to forgive each other, to let go of any resentments and hurts and live with love become friends again, be brothers, be supports for each other.”
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