Today we covered the memorial for Princess Diana held in London today, remembering her tragic death 10 years ago. WATCH VIDEO
Lewis Whyld / Pool via AP
From left, Prince Charles, Prince Harry and Prince William
greet guests at the Guards' Chapel, London, on Friday.
It's an emotional day for a lot of people in Great Britain and around the world. For us, it's a day to think back and remember where we were when we heard Diana had died. I find it kind of amazing that I remember exactly where I was, even though Diana had basically no impact on my life up until that point (I was in my sweltering college dorm room).
But today's memorial has not been without its share of controversy. Reportedly under pressure from Prince Charles, Camilla Parker-Bowles initially said she would accept an invitation to the event.
The public outcry was vehemently against Camilla attending, and she eventually caved under the pressure on Monday and said she would not come.
Her announcement came just hours after a column written by Diana's best friend, Rosa Monckton, published an op-ed in The Mail, saying Diana would have been "astonished" if Camilla were there. She wrote, "Now controversy surrounds the very service designed to give thanks for her life. And so, once again, I feel I should go in to bat on her behalf."
Can you imagine if she had actually shown up? This is a woman that Diana had called the "third person" in her marriage with Prince Charles.
All of our families have strained relationships that rise to the surface at weddings, funerals and other events. But this is arguably the most public family in the world, and everyone knows what happened between Diana, Charles and Camilla.
As Diana biographer Andrew Morton told me yesterday, Camilla could have simply said that she would love to come, but that she had a prior commitment that, by gosh, she just couldn't get out of.
Instead, Prince Charles angered a lot of people, and it's left to Prince William and Prince Harry to try to smooth things over with their grace and humility -- two traits they inherited from their mother.
