Last Hours, Death, Transfer from France, Funeral and Interment

[TLLK]

Originally Posted by Moonmaiden23

I see. Initially, it was reported that he had his seat belt on, but further investigation revealed that he didn't. Thanks for the correction.

I've read that his face was reconstructed using 150 pieces of titanium. He is beyond fortunate to have survived.

Oh my Lord. I knew that it required extensive surgeries but when you put in terms like this, you have to admire and thank the medical professionals in France and elsewhere who saved his life and reconstructed his face.

[Moonmaiden23]

Indeed. He was unrecognizable. Skilled maxillofacial surgeons using family photographs had to reconstruct his face from scratch. Mohammed Al Fayed paid for it and the rest of the cost was absorbed by the British National Health Service.

He remembers almost nothing of the night of August 30/31 1997.

His survival seems miraculous the more I think about it.

[Blog Real]

British TV Announce Princess Diana’s Death

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xaor9zxp-Y

[Curryong]

That day was so sad, so dramatic. I and my family were glued to the TV for hours. One of those events we still remember so clearly.

[Elan]

Originally Posted by Curryong

That day was so sad, so dramatic. I and my family were glued to the TV for hours. One of those events we still remember so clearly.

Indeed. Most of what I recall in hindsight was that the news of Diana being taken and treated in the hospital provided a false sense of an outcome unlike Dodi and Henri Paul. The more time that allowed for it, the more of a jolt that arrived when it was confirmed.

[Roslyn]

Originally Posted by Elan

Indeed. Most of what I recall in hindsight was that the news of Diana being taken and treated in the hospital provided a false sense of an outcome unlike Dodi and Henri Paul. The more time that allowed for it, the more of a jolt that arrived when it was confirmed.

I felt the same. The news suggested she would recover, so it was more of a shock when the truth was revealed.

I remember the day very clearly. I heard the initial reports on the car radio going to an event. The news of her death was not released until I was arriving home. I went inside and went straight to the TV and was glued to it for the rest of the day and night, and the next day. My husband thought I was mad. I wasn't particularly fond of Diana but her death hit me hard. I still can't explain why it affected me like that.

[Curryong]

I was staying in England on the week she died and her funeral took place, on a visit from Australia. Strangely enough one of the weird little things I remember reading from that time was that there was a huge surge in electricity usage in the breaks from watching TV that people took (toilet breaks, brewing a cuppa in the jug, toasting sandwiches etc.)

That happens during most popular TV programmes (such as international soccer games) but apparently it was especially notable in the 24 hours following Diana’s death. It was as if people could only tear themselves away from the TV for a short while.

If it had happened nowadays I guess everybody would have jumped on the Internet, causing it to crash!

[LauraS3514]

I was on vacation at the beach when the first reports came in. I was actually watching CNN and saw the graphic crawl at the bottom change from "Princess Diana injured" to "Princess Diana Dead."

[Denville]

That must have been in America. In the UK.. I woke up in the monring, put the TV on and the reports were that she was dead.

[Rayal]

I really can't go into it too deeply but that whole week my family was so sad and it broke my heart as well. To see my sister and mother crying was too much for me and so I would take long walks around my home, and asked a thousand times, "Why?"

[MaryVirginia]

Originally Posted by Elan

Indeed. Most of what I recall in hindsight was that the news of Diana being taken and treated in the hospital provided a false sense of an outcome unlike Dodi and Henri Paul. The more time that allowed for it, the more of a jolt that arrived when it was confirmed.

Yes, when it was announced that Dodi had died, I just kept thinking what a hard time Diana would have going on in life... not even thinking that she herself would not make it.

[Alison H]

It was overnight here. I remember waking up, putting the 7am news on on the radio, and hearing Tony Blair going on about a great loss to the nation. I realised that someone significant had died, but I thought maybe an elderly former politician, and then I put the TV on and saw that it was Diana.

[Hallo girl]

I was asleep when a member of my family wakened me up to tell me about the car crash and Dodi was dead, that was me in front of the television the whole night until they finally announced what by then we sensed was coming.

[camelot23ca]

I'd heard Diana had been in an accident but they were initially reporting that her injuries were serious but not critical. I was shocked when my mother turned on the TV some time later and we found out she'd died.

What I actually always remember when Diana's death is mentioned is something that happened afterwards, when I was at university. I was in a small group session for a course I was taking and the instructor was talking about generation defining events - Pearl Harbour, Kennedy's death, etc. He asked us if we thought there'd been anything like this for our generation. We were all in our late teens/early 20s. Someone mentioned the Berlin Wall coming down but we'd all been kids during the lead up to that. Then someone kind of sheepishly mentioned Diana's death and we laughed a little because we knew that wasn't really the sort of thing the instructor meant. After congratulating us on being a very boring generation thus far, he said he hoped we'd all find the course interesting, and then told us to get out and enjoy the great weather. 9/11 happened the following week.

[Curryong]

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/u...-a7917366.html


How the British media handled the early reports of Diana’s death in a pre-social media world. Some people still relied on landline phones. Behind the scenes memories of TV anchors and others.

[Duke of Marmalade]

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...ess-Diana.html
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...nas-words.html


The DM re-examines Diana's last days with eye witnesses.

[Iluvbertie]

Originally Posted by Curryong

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/u...-a7917366.html


How the British media handled the early reports of Diana’s death in a pre-social media world. Some people still relied on landline phones. Behind the scenes memories of TV anchors and others.

Some people still do rely on landline phones. I don't have a mobile and I also have friends who don't have mobiles either, especially many older friends who have landlines only. They are on the old age pension and don't have the money for a mobile or the internet. They rely on TV to get news etc. It is really annoying for them when the news say 'to check xxxx go to yyyy website' as they don't have the internet to be able to do that.

If my income continues to remain at its current rate I will be getting rid of the internet within the next few years due to the need to make budget cuts.

[Denville]

Originally Posted by Iluvbertie

Some people still do rely on landline phones. I don't have a mobile and I also have friends who don't have mobiles either, especially many older friends who have landlines only. They are on the old age pension and don't have the money for a mobile or the internet. They rely on TV to get news etc. It is really annoying for them when the news say 'to check xxxx go to yyyy website' as they don't have the internet to be able to do that.

If my income continues to remain at its current rate I will be getting rid of the internet within the next few years due to the need to make budget cuts.

I only have a landline phone, too. and back in 1997 it was still pretty common to only have that. I have tried mobiles but they seem to break down so much and the lines are bad, i prefer a landline.

[Curryong]

I just wrote about land line phones with reference to the media contacts of the time of Diana’s death, 1997. The observation about many relying on landlines is in the article.

I’m 75 and love my iPad and mobile. Can’t do without them!

[Erin9]

Originally Posted by Curryong

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/u...-a7917366.html


How the British media handled the early reports of Diana’s death in a pre-social media world. Some people still relied on landline phones. Behind the scenes memories of TV anchors and others.

This was really interesting. Thanks.

I’m think it’s a very good thing iPhones weren’t available then to possibly take some horrific photos.

I know this wasn’t the main point- but it was interesting to read that it apparently is/was protocol for government officials not to be flying when a royal death is announced. And that’s why some guessed earlier that Diana had passed away: because a plane was delayed in leaving.