Never-before-seen portrait of Diana goes on display
A previously unseen portrait of Princess Diana is set to go on display for the first time at a new exhibition in her former home of Kensington Palace.
The photo, taken in 1988 by minimalist photographer David Bailey, reveals a different side to Diana.
Claudia Acott Williams, the curator at Historic Royal Palaces, said the image was one of several taken during the sitting, which was kept by Bailey while the rest were shown at the National Portrait Gallery.
“For me, this is the most powerful of all the pictures in that sitting,” Ms Williams told The Telegraph UK.
“Here, she’s retreating from the camera a bit, she looks stoic. It’s doing something very different.”
The photograph is a late addition to the exhibition Life Through a Royal Lens, which features some of the most iconic images taken of the British royals.
It was loaned to the exhibition by the digital Princess Diana Museum with Bailey’s agreement.
Other never-before-seen images include one of the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh laughing together during their 70th wedding anniversary photo shoot in 2017, which was considered too intimate and informal to be released as an official portrait.
“I think this speaks to their relationship with each other,” Ms Williams said.
“This is them as a married couple, as husband and wife, not just monarch and consort.
“It’s such a subtle difference from the existing photographs and yet it tells us a different story, the chemistry between these two as long into their marriage as it was.”
A photo considered to be the earliest surviving image of a royal family member will also be on display, taken by William Constable in March 1842 of Prince Albert.
More intimate shots of Queen Elizabeth II and her children will be on display as well, along with photos of Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis taken by the Duchess of Cambridge.
50 photographs taken by members of the public, including one of Diana from her 1993 visit to Hinde Street Church, round out the exhibition, which opens on Friday, March 4.
Image: Kensington Palace