Princess Diana death: tributes pour in on 25th anniversary of fatal Paris car crash - what has been said?

The world is remembering Princess Diana today on the 25th anniversary of her car crash death.

Her brother Charles Spencer has led the tributes, tweeting an emotional photograph of a flag at half-mast at her ancestral home of Althorp.

Fans have gathered outside her former London home of Kensington Palace with a series of banners, photographs and floral displays tied to the gates.

The Princess of Wales died aged 36 in a car crash in Paris on 31 August 1997 that shocked the world.

Photographs and flowers were left in memory of Diana around the Liberty Flame monument above the tunnel of the Alma Bridge in Paris where she died.

Tributes to Princess Diana

Her brother Charles has spoken out regularly about his sister’s tragic passing in August 1997, and over the past week has shared tributes left by fans at the family home.

The temple dedicated to the late Princess has her name inscribed at the top and has a black bench with a plaque hanging above it of a profile silhouette of Diana and the family crest.

Charles Spencer has posted on his Instagram stories tributes left at the temple by visitors.

A photo shared by Earl Spencer showed bunches of flowers left on the bench beneath the plaque with the caption: “Flowers kindly left by day visitors to Althorp”.

He also brother tweeted an emotional photograph of a flag at half-mast at her ancestral home of Althorp.

Tessy Ojo, chief executive officer of The Diana Award, established to promote the princess’s belief that young people have the power to change the world for the better, has paid tribute to the royal.

Ms Ojo, who left flowers at Kensington Palace after Diana was killed, said: “Her ability to connect with people through kindness and compassion is one of her most significant legacies. She left a mark on all our lives.”

She added: “Diana, Princess of Wales, believed that young people have the power to change the world.

“Continuing her legacy also means building the capacity of young people to change their world by tackling the big issues of our time.

“Like Diana, Princess of Wales they’re not afraid to speak out and be at the forefront of change.

“I can only imagine how immensely proud she would be of the tens of thousands of young people from across the world who are continuing her legacy.”

Former Good Morning Britain host Piers Morgan paid tribute to Princess Diana, sharing a throwback photo of Prince William and Harry’s mother from The Mirror’s 1 September 1997 cover.

He said: “25 years ago today, the world’s biggest star died in a car crash.

“She was so famous I didn’t even need to put her name on the Daily Mirror front page about the tragedy.

“Everyone knew Princess Diana and this Demarchelier photo epitomised her radiant beauty and superstar quality. RIP.”

Royal Family tributes

William and Harry will pay their own private respects to their mother rather than doing so jointly in public.

A source told the Daily Mirror that William is “not planning” to make a public statement.

“He will no doubt spend the day reflecting on his mother’s incredible legacy and the work he continues to do every day to further it in any way he can,” the source told the Daily Mirror.

Meanwhile Prince Harry paid tribute to his mother last week.

Speaking after a fundraising polo match for his charity Sentebale, named in memory of his mother, he said: “I want it to be a day filled with memories of her incredible work and love for the way she did it.

“I want it to be a day to share the spirit of my mum with my family, with my children, who I wish could have met her.”

He added: “Every day, I hope to do her proud.

“She was tireless in her work to support and destigmatise those experiencing HIV/AIDS. Fittingly, her favourite flowers were forget-me-nots.”

Diana’s sons jointly paid tribute to their mother last summer on 1 July when they unveiled a statue of the princess in the garden of Kensington Palace.

Who was Princess Diana?

Her death 25 years ago in a Paris car crash shocked the globe and saw unprecedented expressions of grief from thousands of ordinary people across the world.

She was labelled “the People’s Princess” because of her common touch which could bridge social divides.

Diana’s appeal began almost from the moment she appeared on the world stage as a teenager in the early 1980s, living in a London flat with her girlfriends and working in a nursery school.

Though described as a “commoner”, Lady Diana Spencer was a member of the aristocracy.

She was born into a privileged family that had close connections with the royal family.

Her fairy-tale wedding on 29 July 1981 at St Paul’s Cathedral was watched by hundreds of millions on TV turning her into a global superstar.

But after a decade of marriage to the Prince of Wales cracks began to appear.

Diana was haunted by the belief Charles’s former lover Camilla Parker Bowles was part of his life, and she was wracked by insecurities.

The marriage was effectively over by the end of the 1980s, but the prince and princess kept up the public pretence until they separated in December 1992.

That year Andrew Morton’s explosive book, Diana, Her True Story, revealed she had suffered from bulimia and had attempted to kill herself a number of times.

A few years later Charles made his own public admission, telling broadcaster Jonathan Dimbleby in a television documentary that he had been unfaithful after his marriage had “irretrievably” broken down.

Dimbleby’s authorised biography confirmed how Charles had re-established the “intimacy” of his earlier friendship with Camilla when the marriage floundered.

Diana made her own TV confession in November 1995 when she told the BBC’s Panorama programme that she had an affair with Life Guards officer Major James Hewitt.

She told the BBC Panorama programme saying “well, there were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded” – a reference to Camilla Parker Bowles, who Charles later married.

The royal couple divorced in August 1996. She championed causes that, at the time, were not fashionable – publicly shaking hands with Aids patients, supporting homeless charities and taking William to meet rough sleepers.

The Paris car crash killed Diana’s lover Dodi Fayed and their chauffeur Henri Paul, as well as the 36-year-old princess.