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Diana-Remembered-Part2
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The crisis of confidence was thrown into dramatic focus after the death of Diana, Princess of Wales. Many people were saddened or even offended by what was seen to be the family's slow response to the public mood that week.
In her broadcast on the eve of Diana's funeral, the Queen said that "lessons would be learned". A senior Palace source confided to me later: "We nearly lost it." What, therefore, is being done?
The way ahead
To start with, the re-examination had begun before Diana's death. Several years ago, the royal family set up a discussion procedure known as the Way Ahead Group. Senior members of the family, with the Queen herself in the chair, got together twice a year, during the holidays at Balmoral and Sandringham.
One of the first decisions was that the Queen should pay tax. Then, after the Windsor Castle fire of November 1992, it was agreed that the tax payers should not pick up the bill for restoration, but that Buckingham Palace would be open to the public in the summer and the money raised in that way instead.
The Way Ahead Group also examined whether the royal family was casting its net wide enough in its visits. Were there sections of society being "left out"?
There was a brisk spring cleaning of royal finances, with the appointment of a hot shot City accountant, Michael Peat.
The Civil List was cut back and now only the Queen, Prince Philip and the Queen Mother are supported by the taxpayer. Even royal travel was changed, with a budget now set each year and flights for visits abroad even put out to tender.
The Royal Yacht Britannia was scrapped and the Queen did not press for a replacement.
So a great deal was done long before Diana's death and indeed some people in the Palace felt that the worst was over. Then came the events of August 31, 1997.
The sudden outpouring of public emotion took royal officials by surprise. It was realised that all the changes which had been made were not enough.
"Touchy feely" future?
What the public appeared to want was a more "caring" monarchy, something in the style of Diana herself.
Their problem was that the royal family has been trained from infancy to hide emotion and to present the traditional stiff upper lip. Yet suddenly, people were demanding that the family became more "touchy feely".
The response has been to try to react in some way to this demand without throwing over all the old virtues. Prince Charles, who has a fine record of work among the young unemployed with his Prince's Trust, is now talking more easily with the media.
Two years ago, he managed to go on a trip round Central Asia for nine days without saying hello once to the small press party with him. On a recent visit to the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan, in contrast, he chatted away quite easily.
But, clearly, there is a way to go. The discussions among the focus groups have shown an ambiguous public response.
The royal family is felt to be an important part of British public life but is seen as too remote. So now we have the prospect of a super communications chief. His or her role will not be easy. The royal ship of state can only change direction slowly.
BBC News special report online:
Death of a Princess: Six months on...
- The grief of millions
- On the Net: Truly the People's Princess
- "Why did Diana die?"
- Deaths a fertile ground for conspiracy theories
Soon after the accident, rumours and reports were heard of a white car zigzagging in front of the Mercedes in which Diana, Princess of Wales, and Dodi Fayed died, moments before the fatal crash.
The car has not been found, but that does not worry conspiracy theorists. They thrive on uncertainty. To them, even accepted facts appear as part of a grand cover-up.
Questions about the deaths abound in their minds, such as:- What did Diana mean when she said, a few days before her death, that she would shortly do something that would shock everyone?
- How could it have taken nearly half an hour for the Mercedes to reach the crash site when the tunnel is only a couple of miles from the Ritz Hotel, especially as the car was travelling at high speed.
- Is it true that Paris was swarming with secret service agents and special forces during that fateful weekend?
- Wouldn't a Mercedes limousine have protected its occupants better from a crash?
- Did Diana actually manage to speak some last words while she lay dying in the hospital?
- Were there traces of drugs in Dodi's and Diana's blood?
- Isn't it strange that, after all the money spent on the investigation, the white Fiat has not been located?
But many theories go much more to the heart of the matter. Conspiracy theorists don't just ask questions, they provide answers too.
A new life?
A common notion is that the deaths were staged to enable Diana and Dodi to start a new life away from the world's prying eyes. This basic theory is embroidered by ideas that Dodi's experience at film production helped stage manage the event.
Security forces colluded to ensure that the press did not find out what was going on, the theories run. This would leave the couple free to marry and live together, probably on a private island, never to be disturbed again.
Some even suggest that with plastic surgery, the princess could return to look after her sons. "Look out for a similarly built nanny coming on the scene in the near future," one theorist writes.
Civil war
Some conspiracists speculate on who would have anything to gain from the deaths. The usual suspects are the Royal Family and the British Government (although the Israeli secret service, Mossad, is suspected by some).
Reasons include supposed hatred for Diana, resistance to the idea that the mother of the heir to the throne could be involved with a Muslim, and freeing Prince Charles to marry his friend Camilla Parker-Bowles. One particularly imaginative 'motive' includes wanting to avert a civil war (between Prince William and any future half-brother).
Profit mongers
Another group which comes under question is the manufacturers of landmines, who found their business interests under attack from Diana's campaign against their products.
Or perhaps it was a business rival of Dodi Fayed's father, Mohammed Al Fayed. Some have even alleged that the British Conservative Party was behind the crash, in revenge for the dispute over the Cash-for-Questions affair in which Mr Al Fayed gave money to former Tory MP Neil Hamilton.
Yet most of these theories are advanced only by individuals who are doing a bit of kite-flying.
There was a conspiracy'
Mr Al Fayed himself, however, has been the most prominent character in the drama to say that he believes his son and Diana were not killed in an accident.
Under the headline 'It was no accident', he told the Mirror newspaper earlier this month: "I believe there were people who did not want Dodi and Diana to be together."
"There was a conspiracy and I will not rest until I have established exactly what happened."
Whatever the conclusion of the investigation - but especially if it backs the conventional accident explanation - it seems the conspiracists will not be alone in suspecting foul play.
BBC News special report online:
Death of a Princess: Six months on...
- The grief of millions
- On the Net: Truly the People's Princess
- "Why did Diana die?"
- The battle for Diana's lucrative legacy
- the changing face of the monarchy
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites
Police in Australia have taken possession of a holidaymakers' videotape which has been linked with the investigation into the death of Diana, Princess of Wales.
The video shot by two Australian tourists in Paris is reported to show a white car, which is rumoured to have been involved in a collision with the car carrying the Princess, just before it crashed.
But there's been no official word of what the tape shows.
From the newsroom of the BBC World Service
Wednesday, 4 February, 1998, 11:10 GMT
Police in Australia have taken possession of a holidaymakers' videotape which has been linked with the investigation into the death of Diana, Princess of Wales.
The video shot by two Australian tourists in Paris is reported to show a white car, which is rumoured to have been involved in a collision with the car carrying the Princess, just before it crashed.
But there's been no official word of what the tape shows.
From the newsroom of the BBC World Service
Kevin Connolly Paris![image: [ BBC Correspondent: Kevin Connolly ]](http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/images/_43691_connolly.jpg)
![[ image: The wreck of the Princess's Mercedes S280]](http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/images/_43918_crash150.jpg)
The wreck of the Princess's Mercedes S280Thursday, January 1, 1998 Published at 11:44 GMT
BBC's Stephen Jessel reports from Paris on the investigation into the fatal crash (0'53")
In France, more details have emerged from the police inquiry into the road accident which killed Diana Princess of Wales four months ago. A leaked report in the newspaper Le Parisien this morning says detectives have statements from two witnesses who saw a white Fiat Uno being driven erratically near the scene of the accident. The witnesses came forward three weeks after the crash, but this is the first time the police have given details of what they said. Our Paris correspondent Kevin Connolly reports:
It's been known for weeks that French police believed a second car, probably a white Fiat Uno, played some sort of role in the accident which killed the Princess of Wales, Dodi al-Fayed and the chauffeur of their Mercedes, Henri Paul. Until now it seemed that theory was based on evidence found at the scene, including shards of glass from a broken headlight.
But in a report to the investigating magistrate, police are also said to quote two witnesses, named only as "Francoise" and "Valerie", who were driving along nearby and saw a white Uno zigzagging out of the tunnel. It was driven by a brown-haired man and they say there was a large dog in the back seat, which they noticed as the Uno's driver cut in front of them, glancing behind him repeatedly.
The publication of these details doesn't really advance the inquiry. Police have so far traced only about 10% of the 40,000 or so Unos which answer the description.
The search for the missing car has been criticized as being too slow and too expensive, and it seems police still believe the main factors in the accident are the speed at which the Princess's car was travelling and the fact that the chauffeur had been drinking heavily
Thursday, January 1, 1998 Published at 12:05 GMTWhite Fiat seen near Diana crash site
More evidence that a white Italian-made car was involved in the crash that killed Diana, Princess of Wales, and her friend, Dodi Al Fayed, has been produced by French police.
In a leaked report to the investigating magistrate, police quote two witnesses - known as Francoise and Valery to protect their identities - as saying they saw the Fiat Uno zigzagging out of the tunnel in Paris, seconds after the crash.
They say the driver was a European man of about 40 with brown hair. He had a large dog in the back of his car and the vehicle had a noisy exhaust. He kept looking over his shoulder and cut in front of the witnesses' vehicle.
Not immediately realising the significance of what they had seen, Francois and Valerie waited three weeks before contacting investigators, officials said.
Since the crash on August 31, police have checked more than 3,000 vehicles fitting the description, but have not managed to establish a link to the accident.
They have been following leads suggesting that a white Fiat Uno built between 1983 and 1989 was involved. Traces of paint and broken glass pointed to such a car having hit the Princess's Mercedes S280.
Police are reported to have found one owned by a man with a large dog who recently had his car repainted red. However, they found no evidence to link him to the accident.
Causes of crash agreed
Checks will continue in 1998 despite criticism that the Diana probe has tied up precious resources that might be better used elsewhere.
Judge Herve Stephan is not expected to wrap up the inquiry until next summer even though the causes of the crash are generally agreed, justice sources said.
Judge Stephan has placed nine press photographers and a motorcyclist under investigation on suspicion that they chased Diana's car and contributed to the accident, or failed to come to the aid of accident victims.
But excessive speed and alcohol appear to be to blame rather than the photographers, investigators say.
They found that driver Henri Paul was driving at a very high speed and had a criminal level of alcohol in his blood at the time of the crash.
New details of Diana crash revealed
Paris hospital denies Diana was pregnant
Memorial garden planned at Diana's home
Diana's lawyers could sue Al Fayed
Doubts over Diana and Dodi's 'last interview'
Diana bodyguard returns to Paris
Diana fund given £20m boost
Security tightened at Diana's resting place
Prince Charles praises Diana
![image: [ Princess Diana: quoted as making barbed comments about Royal life ]](http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/images/_41162_diana300.jpg)
Princess Diana: quoted as making barbed comments about Royal life
Princess Diana's former aides are examining an article published on Friday by the French magazine, Paris Match.
The magazine claims it conducted an intimate interview with the Princess of Wales and her friend Dodi Fayed not long before the couple were killed in a car crash on August 31.
Buckingham Palace says the interview never took place and Diana's closest adviser has cast doubt on its authenticity.
