Netflix: Who Killed Jill Dando? Why was the golden girl of TV often compared to Princess Diana?

The new Netflix true-crime documentary, 'Who Killed Jill Dando?' is released today (Tuesday September 26) and will look at the unsolved murder case of Jill Dando. 

Jill Dando was shot dead on the doorstep of 29 Gowan Avenue Fulham, London on April 26 1999. The journalist and Crimewatch presenter was just 37 years old when she died. 

Loner Barry George was convicted of the murder but was acquitted after a retrial several years later. It’s been almost 24 years and the case is still unsolved. 

In the first episode, a sound clip of a news reader at the time says: “Jill Dando was in the opinion of many in Britain second only to Princess Diana in terms of public affection.”

Jill Dando was often compared to Princess Diana who had died two years before in a car accident in France. But why are they so often compared to one another? 

Crimewatch co-host Nick Ross told ABC News in 2003: “They were both tall, blonde, good-looking women of approximately the same age. They both had that mixture of refinement and absolute naturalness. I think, without exaggeration, Jill's murder was second only in its shock value to the death of Diana … Jill was so central to just ordinary life." Princess Diana was 36 when she died.

Speaking of their hairstyle Jill Dando’s hairdresser Martyn Maxey who features in the Netflix series discusses the TV presenter’s signature hairstyle and how it was compared to Princess Diana’s. When asked who had the hairstyle first Martyn smiles and says “Jill.” 

They both dressed elegantly and had a warmth about them that people were naturally drawn to. Jill Dando and Princess Diana both had obvious similarities when it came to how they looked and that they both died in tragic circumstances. But it was the way they spoke to the public that made the nation adore them.  

The late Queen Elizabeth III commented on Jill Dando’s death at the time saying she was “shocked and saddened”. 

In the documentary journalist Jane Moore says “Following the death of Princess Diana, I would say that Jill Dando’s murder was the biggest story that we will ever report on.” 

Watch ‘Who Killed Jill Dando’ on Netflix from Tuesday September 26.