I, for one, have always been opposed to the form of this memorial service, believing it to be contentious and divisive, which it has been. I have always thought it a manufactured PR exercise (when has there ever been one before?; why weren't Diana's sons told that a friends and family gathering would be more appropriate if they wished to have one, and not a 500 seat spectacular which excluded so many of their mother's genuine friends?), and as is so often the case, the whole exercise has been turned into a farce.
The only one who was bound to suffer was Camilla, as she has. The only one who has shown good sense throughout is Camilla, who was, allegedly, reluctant to go from the beginning and only agreed to do so at her husband's insistence. The only one who comes out of this with any kudos at all, is Camilla. She is a woman, obviously, of common sense and sensitivity, and it's a great pity, in my opinion, that the rest of the family apparently share very little of her intuition and nous. Time and again the Windsors get it wrong; they need Camilla to bring some reality into their lives. That she has been unfairly victimised in this whole matter is clear to me, but I do not blame the gutter press so much as I do those royal advisers who just don't have a clue and never have had. They've almost brought the family down before and once again, have exposed them to all sorts of criticism and spite, particularly the Duchess. I do believe that she was seen as being expendable in all of this and it truly annoys me.