After Diana by Christopher Andersen

Yes, i have just read 'After Diana'. The reason i started to in the first place was because my General Education module teacher played my class a video about Diana and how the palace reacted to her death when she passed on. The roles were played by other actors. I watched as the Queen refused to fly the flag at half mast and where she made a speech through the television. As i watched it ignited my curiosity for the royals. You see, i was about 4 years old the year Princess Diana died, plus, i am a Singaporean. So, what happened to the world outside my own, i don't really understand. At about that age, the only thing i remembered was that there was a car crash that got A LOT of people around me so... weird... i remembered a news where they featured a car and that it was night time and something else. I remembered the serious tone of the ' News Lady'. And that, was what i knew and remembered, the rest are just foggy.
Years down the road, i am about 12 and came to know about Diana, a royal who died in a car crash. Ok... You may be wondering why 12 and not earlier. I've no idea too... It just wasn't important to me.
16 years old, i watched a korean drama, Goong. It was about a teenage girl betrothed to the teenage prince of korea who loves another girl. Similar case story to real life 'Diana and company' huh? But the drama ended differently from as real life. The guy falls in love with the girl he's betrothed to and ends up loving her deeply. In the end, he doesn't want his throne and his sister took over his place. Another guy who is the cousin of the prince also ended up loving the betrothed girl but she loves only the prince. Now the girl the prince initially likes start to regret refusing the prince's proposal to marry him because of her aspirations for ballet. She tries to get him back and a woman told her about 'Camilla'. How she won back her prince. And then i was perplexed. Who the hell is Camilla?????
So, i went online to check out this Camilla and found out that she is Prince Charles love. OOkkay... then i went back to watching my drama and never went to find out more.
fast forward 2 more years and here i am. After finding out about Princess Diana from the video, i went to check online about when she died... scroll...
Died, 31 August 1997
WHAT????
The reason i was super surprised was that 31 August is the day i was born. Therefore i became much more curious to find out more and on began my journey.
i went to read a website about Princess Diana's wedding and decided that i had enough of the pictures and decided to watch youtube of her wedding day instead. And boy do i agree that she looked really pretty, beautiful, elegant.
but i wasn't content so i went to the library and borrowed a book. It was a book with pictures of Queen Elizabeth from the day she was born till now. I was surprised by how beautiful she looked. So graceful in every picture. i always thought that she was just another old woman, no different from others but throughout the video my teacher played and the photos along with each description, i realised that she is so courageous, a very very very strong woman.

Then i went on to watch 2 documentaries about William and Harry. One documentary on William and Kate. And one documentary just on Harry alone and another on Camilla alone. But it wasn't enough, though a lot of information was given to me. i still felt that i did not get the full picture. I understood little from them. It wasn't enough.

i wanted to know more. To make up for the years that i lived in obliviousness about Princess Diana. So, i asked my Mum if she was a fan of Diana because my teacher obviously was. My teacher said that before Diana shook hands with AIDS patients, she took off her glove. That Queen Elizabeth would never have done that. And what Diana did was considered comething extremely great and a big hoo hah because no one at that time ever did such a thing. Now, back to my Mum.
She said that everyone loved her and that she too is a fan. And she went on to elaborate why. That Diana was already committed to saving/helping lives before she was married to Charles. That she is a very caring lady, she's very graceful and polite and everything great about her. Then, came my next question.
Me: Did you know she died on my birthday?
and my Mum said 'of course'. At that time, we were celebrating my birthday and had just cut the cake when my Mum's phone rang. Her friend said
"Da (my Mum's name in short), Princess Diana DIED!!"
Mum: Not funny la 'friend's name'! :)
It's true!!!
Mum: Really? are you lying?
It's true! in a car crash!!! Switch on the TV!!
*Mum switches on the TV
Mum: Oh my god... Everyone, EVERYONE (Refering to my relatives, my mum's side of the family), PRINCESS DIANA DIED!!!
And then, the adults were all glued to the TV set and when it ended, my Mum and the rest looked around and realised all the children for my birthday party including me, were missing.
Mum: WHERE ARE THE CHILDREN?!?!!?!?
It was pandemonium. My Mum said that it was very chaotic at that time and my said that each year when my family celebrates my birthday, she unconciously remember that day.

And apparently, i think it's true for a lot of other people as i've read in 'After Diana':
No one will ever forget what they were doing the day she died.

Yes, to finally satisfy my hunger for more information, i borrowed this book: 'After Diana'
It was this book that finally made me realise more of what happened. it took me a day and a half to finish the book.
I finally understood...
Charles cheated on Diana before they married on with Camilla. Charles cared nothing for Diana. Camilla is/was the most hated woman, Prince William was always there to comfort Princess Diana. Allegations that Diana might have been assasinated. Polls that showed Britons wanted Prince William to succeed the throne rather than Prince Charles, Charles saying to Camilla over the phone his desire to be a box of tampons. The Queen had her children make appointments if they want to see her. Prince Charles's affairs, Prince Charles never loved Diana like what she claimed to be and allegations that Prince Harry might not be Prince Charles's son. But also, the undying love between Charles and Camilla, the beautiful romance between Prince William and Kate Middleton, the chemistry between Prince Harry and Chelsy Davy, how Diana changed the monarchy, Diana would have been immensely proud- and sick with worry at the same time for harry (the military thing) and more.

For me, i hate Camilla but a small part of me want to cheer her on for striving on for love. A big part of me hate Charles to the core but he did what he did (well, mostly) for love, i feel sorry that Williams and Harry lost their Mother at such a young age, that they must have been emotially scarred for life. I pity them for having such a father who didn't care about his children's feelings but rather his own pleasure. I am angry that Diana died so young, unable to see how Williams and Harry grew up to be. And i feel extremely grateful that the two young boys remained strong and happy and that they had found their love. I really support Queen Elizabeth and though i am alright with Camilla, i too along with many like me, am not ready to see Camilla as Queen. As well much prefer Prince William succeed the throne.

Christopher Anderson:

• The Queen conceded that she sometimes felt as if she had failed her daughter-in-law. "I tried to reach out to Diana many times," she would explain to Paul Burrell. "The trouble was, your majesty," he replied, "that you spoke in black and white. The princess spoke in colour".

• As Diana had feared, in the absence of their mother William and Harry had been thoroughly Windsorised- indoctrinated in the polo-playing, foxhunting, horse-loving ways of the Royal Family. Nevertheless, the seed she had planted in them at an early age took root and bloomed in a way she could hardly have imagined. The excess of youth aside, both William and Harry were taking on many of the causes she had championed, and finding some of their own.

• Ten years after Diana, the debate over what had caused her death rages on. Ten years after Diana, whether Charles ever becomes King and Camilla his Queen remains uncertain. Ten years after Diana, the world is more captivated than ever by the lives and loves of Prince William and Prince Harry. Future generations may well simply divide the story of the British monarchy into two parts: the thousand years before and the years After Diana.