EXCLUSIVE: Revealed — The One Huge Similarity Between Deaths of Princess Diana and Queen Elizabeth
A major similarity between Diana's and Queen Elizabeth's deaths was revealed.
Sept. 5 2025, Published 10:15 a.m. ET
The deaths of Princess Diana and Queen Elizabeth II could not have been more different – yet a new documentary has uncovered a striking similarity in how the public responded to the loss of both women, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Diana died aged 36 on August 31, 1997, after the Mercedes carrying her and her companion Dodi Fayed crashed into the Pont de l'Alma tunnel in Paris.
Twenty-five years later, in September 2022, Queen Elizabeth died peacefully at Balmoral Castle aged 96 after a record-breaking 70 years on the throne.
Historic Royal Deaths
Public mourning for Diana and Elizabeth shared a floral tribute.
Despite the contrast – one sudden and tragic, the other expected – both moments triggered extraordinary scenes of public mourning that centered on a single shared gesture: flowers hurled onto the hearses carrying their coffins.
"When Diana's body was flown home to RAF Northolt, the crowds were overwhelming," said John Swain, a Metropolitan Police officer who escorted the cortege.
"We had to change the route because the streets were jammed with people desperate to see her. And as we passed, flowers rained down on the hearse. It was unlike anything I had ever experienced."
The throwing of flowers became a symbol of national grief.
Royal photographer Jayne Fincher, who was at Northolt that night, said the moment marked the start of a national ritual.
"The throwing of flowers became a kind of pilgrimage," she explained. "It was spontaneous, and it showed the depth of feeling Diana inspired."
When Queen Elizabeth's coffin was flown from Scotland to Northolt 25 years later, the scene repeated itself.
"That’s when the first flowers started being chucked down again," said royal author Robert Hardman.
"It was almost identical to Diana's return – people lined the roads in the rain, standing silently and then showering the hearse with flowers. Those moments remind us why the monarchy has such a unique place in British life."
Queen Elizabeth reportedly held a hot water bottle upon hearing the news.
The Channel 5 documentary The Day Diana Died explores the extraordinary public reaction to the princess' death.
It reconstructs the day hour by hour, from the crash in Paris to her body's arrival at St James's Palace.
It also highlights details that have since become part of royal lore, including how Queen Elizabeth reportedly clutched a hot water bottle when woken at Balmoral with the news, and how televisions and radios were removed from the castle to shield young Princes William and Harry.
Reflecting on Diana's impact, royal writer Tina Brown said: "The British people had really come to identify with this young woman they had seen grow up – through all her ups and downs, she was still the People's Princess.
"Her death was one of the greatest stories of the second half of the 20th century."
Diana's Funeral
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The crowds at Hyde Park in London where people gathered to watch Princess Diana funeral service.
The documentary also notes on the morning of Diana's death, the National Grid recorded a huge surge in demand as millions turned on kettles and televisions at the same time.
Brown said: "It was a very British response – console yourself with tea and sit in front of the television."
Diana's funeral on September 6, 1997, was watched by an estimated 32 million people in Britain alone.
As her hearse traveled from London to her family estate at Althorp, flowers once again covered the vehicle – just as they would for Queen Elizabeth decades later.
