The Duke of Cambridge and the Duke of Sussex put on a united front as they unveiled the long-awaited statue of their beloved mother, Diana, Princess of Wales, in an intimate ceremony at her former home, Kensington Palace, on Thursday.
The royal brothers held the emotional gathering in the Sunken Garden - one of their late mother's favourite places to reflect. As well as the sculpture's artist Ian Rank-Broadley, they were joined by close relatives and other members of the statue committee. Meet the 13 guests who joined Diana's sons at the private ceremony...
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Lady Sarah McCorquodale
Princess Diana's older sister, Lady Sarah McCorquodale, is married to Neil McCorquodale. She once briefly dated Prince Charles and was the one who introduced him to her younger sister. Lady Sarah and her family reside near Grantham, Lincolnshire, and she has largely stayed out of the public eye since her sister Diana's tragic death in 1997.
Lady Jane Fellowes
Lady Jane, who is married to the Queen's former private secretary, Robert Fellowes, is another older sister of the late Princess Diana. Both sisters have remained close with their nephews Prince William and Prince Harry. Lady Sarah and Lady Jane both attended the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's son Archie's christening in Windsor in 2019 and were pictured in the official family portraits.
Earl Spencer Charles
Earl Spencer is the younger brother of Diana, and grew up with his three sisters: Diana, Sarah, and Jane, and is now custodian of the Spencer family estate, Althorp House. He has very close links to the royal family; not only is he Prince William and Harry's maternal uncle, but he is also the godson of Her Majesty.
Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton
The chairman of the committee and a close friend of Diana's is the former private secretary to both Prince William and Prince Harry. The former SAS officer has had a long relationship with the royals. He served as equerry to the Queen Mother from 1984 to 1986, assisting in the care of her beloved horses, and was made a Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order in 2013. Quiet, calm and discreet, he was held in such high regard by William and the Duchess of Cambridge that his son Billy was a pageboy at their wedding, and Mr Lowther-Pinkerton was later asked to be a godfather to Prince George.
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Gerry Farrell
Gallery owner Gerry was selected for the statue committee for his artistic direction. He is director of the Sladmore Contemporary gallery, which specialises in sculpture, and has written on its website: "My personal obsession is with sculpture and objects, the power of 'making' and the joy found in a sense of the artist’s hand."
Guy Monson
The financier is a Trustee of the Royal Foundation of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry, and a member of the Organising Committee of the inaugural Invictus Games in London 2014.
John Barnes
John Barnes is the Historic Royal Palaces’ (HRP) chief executive, taking on the role in 2017. He was also a statue committee member. He was previously in charge of conservation, presentation and learning provision at HRP’s six palaces.
Julia Samuel
Julia is a close friend of Diana, godmother to Prince George and Founder Patron and Trustee of Child Bereavement UK, of which Prince William is Royal Patron. She has remained close to both William and Harry and was also part of the statue committee. The Duchess of Sussex is said to have turned to Julia when Meghan struggled with her mental health during pregnancy.
Ian Rank-Broadley
The royal brothers picked renowned artist Ian to create the piece, and is known for his portrait of the Queen on British coins. His bronze work depicting the harrowing realities of war is also the focal point of the Armed Forces Memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum, Staffordshire.
Pip Morrison
Pip redesigned Kensington Palace’s Sunken Garden – home to the new statue. It now features "a simplified layout of deeper flower borders and a more generous lawn around the pool to create a calmer and more reflective setting for the statue".
Rupert Gavin
He is currently Chairman of Historic Royal Palaces and Chairman of the Honours Committee for Arts and Media. A former chief executive of BBC Worldwide and Odeon & UCI cinemas, Rupert is known for producing a long series of successful plays and musicals over the past 30 years. His productions have won 17 Olivier awards and five Tony awards.
Graham Dillamore
Graham is deputy head of gardens and estates at Historic Royal Palaces and led the team of five gardeners who spent a total of 1,000 hours working on the planting of 4,000 flowers. He worked on the Kensington Palace grounds when Diana lived there.
Gardener Gary James
Mr James is head gardener at Kensington Palace for HRP.
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