On what would have been her 60th birthday, Prince William and Prince Harry will be reuniting to unveil a statue of Princess Diana at Kensington Palace.
Much has been made about the reunion of the two brothers, following Harry and Meghan’s revealing Oprah interview. This will be the first time Prince William and Prince Harry have seen each other since Prince Philip’s funeral in April.
Harry has been isolating since his arrival in the UK and is staying at Frogmore Cottage, where Princess Eugenie now lives with her husband Jack Brooksbank and their newborn son, August.
Here’s everything we know about the Diana statue unveiling:
When will the unveiling happen?
The unveiling of Diana’s statue will take place on Thursday, 1 July (local time).
Where will it take place?
The statue will be unveiled at the Sunken Garden in Kensington Palace, the same place where Harry and Meghan had their engagement photo taken.
The garden was chosen as it was a favourite of Diana’s and was replanted in 2017 with white flowers to celebrate her life.
The reason behind it
In 2020, the royal brothers shared the news they had commissioned a statue at Kensington Palace of their late mother to mark what would have been her 60th birthday.
“The princes hope the statue will help all those who visit Kensington Palace to reflect on their mother’s life and legacy,” their joint statement read.
“It has been 20 years since our mother’s death and the time is right to recognise her positive impact in the UK and around the world with a permanent statue.”
Who will be there?
Due to covid restrictions, there will be only a handful of people attending the unveiling. This includes Prince William, Prince Harry, the close family of the Princess of Wales, the sculptor, Ian Rank-Broadley, garden designer Pip Morrison and members of the statue committee.
Prince Harry’s wife, Meghan, who gave birth to her second child, Lilibet on 4 June, will not be in attendance, nor will the Duchess of Cambridge.
The artist behind the sculpture
British artist Ian Rank-Broadley was chosen by William and Harry to design the statue. Rank-Broadley has close ties to the royal family, with his effigy of Queen Elizabeth II featured on the Commonwealth coins.
“Ian is an extremely gifted sculptor and we know that he will create a fitting and lasting tribute to our mother,” said the brothers in their joint statement.
The sculptor said in a statement: “It is my sole and highest intention to fulfil the expectations of Their Royal Highnesses in creating a lasting and fitting memorial to their late mother Diana, Princess of Wales.”
