Queues to get first glimpse of new statue of Princess Diana in the Sunken Garden of Kensington Palace

Diana's 60th birthday
1/14
Robert Jobson2 July 2021

Long queues formed outside Kensington Palace on Friday as members of the public were able to get their first glimpse of the new statue of Diana, Princess of Wales.

The bronze likeness was unveiled by her sons, the Duke of Cambridge and the Duke of Sussex, on Thursday, on what would have been her 60th birthday.

The gardens were closed for the day for the unveiling but this morning people were able to visit the monument in the Sunken Garden, one of the places Diana loved most at the palace.

The figure of the princess is surrounded by three children and depicts Diana, with short cropped hair, in the later years of her life.

William and Harry put their personal differences aside for the brief unveiling ceremony. The princes mingled with guests — including Diana’s siblings, Earl Spencer, Lady Sarah McCorquodale and Lady Jane Fellowes — who applauded as they pulled off a green cloth covering the statue.

Diana
People queuing to see the statue on Friday morning
Jeremy Selwyn

Harry, who lives in the US with his wife Meghan and their two children, arrived in the UK last week to complete his quarantine ahead of the event.

He is understood to have returned to the US immediately after the ceremony.

Diana, Princess of Wales Statue unveiled in the Sunken Garden at Kensington Palace

Diana's 60th birthday
1/23

The brothers, who commissioned the statue of their mother in 2017, said they hoped it would help visitors “reflect on her life and her legacy”. Fans today said artist Ian Rank-Broadley had captured Diana’s openness and compassion.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in