Diana: the concert, her life

Sitting in front of the TV watching the concert dedicated to Diana, Princess of Wales, I thought I'd blog the occasion and all that it represents.

Admittedly, it slipped my mind that it was being screened until just before 6pm which I must say annoyed me, especially as I missed the performance by The Feeling, one of the bands I currently enjoy listening to.

The princes have done their mum proud staging such a spectacular event to celebrate her 46th birthday at easily one of the most fantastic venues in the world: Wembley Stadium. After all, it did take seven long years to complete so it should be good, right? All the proceeds from the ticket sales are being donated to Diana's charities and 63,000 people were there to witness the show. It was said that 500 million were watching worldwide in 140 different countries. Wow! Surely that says it all about this amazing woman.

It is so great to watch the princes joining in with the mexican wave, clapping and dancing along to the music. So down to earth and smashing personalities - Diana would be so proud of them. Actually she would have been proud whatever they'd done with their lives, she was that kind of person. I still get so moved when I see pictures of her interacting with normal people on their level and making THEM feel special; I was actually in tears twice, firstly seeing her with the blind man who wanted to touch her face and also when she was at Thorpe Park with the boys just having fun like a normal family would. That photo snapped in the water shute is just beautiful.

Diana, as we all know, was patron to so many worthwhile charities, some of which other people wouldn't have given the light of day. She showed a caring sensitive approach, and always had a sense of humour. I'll never forget the times when she held the hands of dying AIDS victims; she never judged - all people were equal in her eyes. She especially loved children and you could see her warmth shining through. That's why she will never be forgotten - legends come in all shapes and sizes but this lady had something amazingly special.

Of course, there was another side of her life. Her loveless marriage, her loneliness and her 'secret' love affairs. I don't really want to delve into this as many people have written books about the princess and I fear I could ramble on too much. Anyway, I want the focus of this blog to be on the happiness, not the sadness.

As I type, the concert is coming to its climax with Elton John doing his stuff so effortlessly. I must see him live some time (I've been saying that for too many years). Take That were of course fantastic as they always are - can't wait to see them at the o2 arena in December.
Other artists which performed were: Duran Duran, Status Quo, Joss Stone, Tom Jones, Andrea Bocelli, Sarah Brightman, Josh Groban, Jason Donovan, Donny Osmond, Lee Mead, Connie Fisher, English National Ballet, Will Young, Nellie Furtado, P Diddy, Lily Allen, Kanye West, Roger Hodgson of Supertramp, Fergie, Orson, Anastacia, Pharrell Williams, James Morrison, Natasha Bedingfield, and Rod Stewart. Many other famous faces appeared, having the job of introducing the artists.

Quite fittingly, at the end of the concert they showed old video clips of Diana when she was a child, right from her Christening through to early adolesence. This was played to the tune of Queen's 'These are the days of our lives' and that certainly got me emotional. William and Harry were back on stage to thank everybody and once again to pay tribute to their mother. That must have been a difficult thing for them to do.



I can hardly believe it is almost ten years since Diana's tragic death - where has the time gone? I still feel the incident was suspicious but I suppose we'll sadly never find out the truth.