The People's Princess by Larry King

Author:Larry King
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780307394286
Publisher: Crown/Archetype
Published: 2007-07-16T16:00:00+00:00

DIANE LOUISE JORDAN

Diane Louise Jordan is a British television presenter best known for her role in the long-running children’s program Blue Peter, which she hosted from 1990 until 1996. She is currently hosting BBC1’s religious show, Songs of Praise. Also noted for her charity work, Diane Louise Jordan is vice president of the National Children’s Home in England.

We all need to be loved—whether we admit it or not. All of us.

A friend of mine recalled how, when in Rwanda a few years ago, he was taken to visit a lady in the slums. She was in agony because of an AIDS-related illness and had just hours to live. He described the inadequate dirt-floor shack that was her home among unbearable squalor. And yet he said it wasn’t the intense poverty or painful illness that struck him most, but rather the compassion of her friend who kept vigil. A friend who used no words, just silent tears, to express the deep feelings she had for her dying companion.

In a similar way, it wasn’t words that stirred international attention, but the silent image of two people holding hands. One an HIV/AIDS sufferer and the other a “fairy-tale” princess. When Diana, Princess of Wales, held the hand of that seriously ill man back in the 1980s, many boundaries were crossed, many stigmas defeated. At that time, fear of death by AIDS had gripped the world so savagely that we were in danger of losing our humanity. Yet all it took to crush the storm of fear was a simple loving gesture.

Princess Diana was good at that. She had the courage to follow her instincts, even if it meant being countercultural. She made it her job to be kind and loving.

My first impression of the Princess was mostly disappointment. For me, Prince Charles’s timid young nursery nurse girlfriend lacked character. This was at a time when a lot of my female contemporaries were unashamedly outspoken—for better or worse, we were the beneficiaries of the feminist movement. So to us, Diana’s quiet reserve looked weak.

And yet, even in those early days, when she often looked awkward under the glare of attention, I found her compelling. Initially, my interest in her was purely superficial. I watched fascinated as she transformed from bland “Sloane” (the informal name given to posh people who live in or around London’s wealthy Kensington area) to dynamic fashion icon. It was evident that she was much more than her packaging.

As a BBC television host, I’ve had the privilege of meeting most of the Royal Family. However, I never met Princess Diana. It wasn’t until after her death that I became more closely associated with her.

Despite never having met her, when her tragic death was announced, I took it personally, like countless others. How had she been able to captivate me—a complete stranger—who initially hadn’t really thought that much of her? What was it about her that compelled me on so many levels? What was, and still is, the Diana Factor?

There’s much that

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