Beautiful Virgin Islands

Friday, Aug 08, 2025

Crises threaten UK monarchy's image 25 years after Diana's death

Crises threaten UK monarchy's image 25 years after Diana's death

The royal family's perceived botched response to Diana's death sparked a gradual and largely successful shift in its image management, but recent crises have renewed questions about that modernisation effort.

The death of the princess of Wales on Aug 31, 1997, prompted an outpouring of national grief that senior royals, including Queen Elizabeth II and her son Prince Charles, initially seemed out of step with.

There was eventually an acknowledgement missteps were made and that the family needed to turn the page on a damaging decade of divorces, family infighting and scandals that had dented their public standing.

A quarter-century on, the monarchy now has a far more nimble PR operation, adept at social media and rapid-response while still able to stage grand events like June's Platinum Jubilee celebrations with aplomb.

However, recent controversies -- notably Prince Andrew's links to billionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, and Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle quitting frontline royal duties -- have cast doubts on the monarchy's remoulding.

"Diana's death is this whirlwind moment, which requires the monarchy to reorientate its public image, to embrace a more modern, expressive kind of celebrity image as a way of appealing to audiences," royal historian Ed Owens told AFP.

Noting "that story lives on through her sons", he sees particular peril in Harry's apparent estrangement, the queen's recent handling of scandal-tarred Andrew and heir Charles' looming reign.

"I think there are troubled times ahead," Owens predicted.

'Rehabilitated'


In the immediate aftermath of Diana's death, the queen and Charles, whose divorce from Diana had been finalised the previous year, remained for days at Balmoral Castle, their remote Scottish residence, making no public statements.

Fuelled by other missteps, a media-driven narrative took hold that the family were out of touch at a moment of national significance.

Royal commentators disagree on how fair this criticism was, noting the family's priorities were supporting William and Harry over the sudden loss of their mother as well as organising an elaborate funeral service.

Nonetheless, Buckingham Palace's press operation was gradually revamped, with more PR-savvy people brought in.

Robert Hardman, author of this year's "Queen of Our Times: The Life of Elizabeth II", argued it was a measured "evolution" as the 24-hour news cycle ramped up and then social media arrived.

"Monarchy is not like a brand of cereal, it doesn't relaunch," he cautioned.

"It changes slowly, imperceptibly, but firmly for a reason (and) there was definitely a sense in those years that things needed to change. But you don't suddenly tear the whole thing up."

The shift offered a more "human" image of the queen, who had been reported as being more concerned about her dogs and horses than her subjects.

Charles, mocked as haughty and stiff, underwent an expensive image makeover, according to royal insiders.

William and Harry were key, emerging as Diana-esque "princes of feeling" supported by their father, said Owens.

"His image is very carefully rehabilitated around this idea that he is a loving father to two sons both touched by this tragedy of their mother's death," he added.

'Great mistake'


Hardman said today, instead of a past palace strategy to "stick our heads down and see how this pans out", it generally responds swiftly -- and assertively -- to unfolding controversies.

He pointed to its deftly-deployed line last year that "recollections may vary" following sensational claims from Meghan and Harry that she faced racism within the family.

But for other royal observers, the couple's 2020 departure to America -- dubbed "Megxit" -- requires more than damage-limitation PR, with Harry leaving "a huge hole" in the institution, Owens said.

"Meghan also embodied some of the virtues that Diana had sought to project as well, in terms of emotion and being in touch... with the lives of people in the developing world," he noted.

Meanwhile, the queen's response to the scandal that has engulfed Andrew -- rumoured to be her favourite son -- has echoes of Diana-era errors, with Owens branding it the 96-year-old's "great mistake" of recent decades.

In February, Andrew settled a sexual abuse lawsuit in the US with an Epstein victim. A month later the queen drew widespread criticism after letting him accompany her to a very public thanksgiving service for late husband Prince Philip.

"The Andrew debacle would suggest that the queen possibly hasn't learned from the late 1990s as well as she might have done," said Owens.

"She should've been more responsive to public opinion in keeping Andrew out."

The royal historian sees plenty of similar "pitfalls" ahead in the imminent reign of Charles, who has faced several scandals over fundraising for his charities in addition to longstanding concerns over political interventions.

In contrast to the queen, Charles lacks "subtlety" said Owens. "So you've got problems here."

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Administration Increases Reward for Arrest of Venezuelan President Maduro to Fifty Million Dollars
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
OpenAI Launches GPT‑5, Its Most Advanced AI Model Yet
Embarrassment in Britain: Homelessness Minister Evicted Tenants and Forced to Resign
President Trump nominated Stephen Miran, his top economic adviser and a critic of the Federal Reserve, to temporarily fill an open Fed seat
The AI-Powered Education Revolution: Market Potential and Transformative Impact
Chikungunya Virus Outbreak in Southern China: Over 7,000 Hospitalized
French wine makers have seen catastrophic damage to vines that were almost ready to be harvested after the worst fires in more than 70 years burned through the south of the country
US Lawmaker Probes Intel CEO’s China Ties Amid National Security Concerns
Brazilian President Lula says he’ll contact the leaders of BRICS states to propose a unified response to U.S. tariffs
Trump Open to Meeting Putin as Soon as Next Week, with Possible Trilateral Summit Including Zelenskiy
Katy Perry and Justin Trudeau spark dating rumors, joining high stakes world of celeb-politician romances
US envoy Steve Witkoff arrived in Moscow to seek a breakthrough in the Ukraine war ahead of President Trump’s peace deadline
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Nine people have been hospitalized and dozens of salmonella cases have been reported after an outbreak of infections linked to certain brands of pistachios and pistachio-containing products, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada
Karol Nawrocki Inaugurated as Poland’s President, Setting Stage for Clash with Tusk Government
Trump Signals JD Vance as ‘Most Likely’ MAGA Successor for 2028
US Charges Two Chinese Nationals for Illegal Nvidia AI Chip Exports
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
U.S. Tariff Policy Triggers Market Volatility Amid Growing Global Trade Tensions
Tariffs, AI, and the Shifting U.S. Macro Landscape: Navigating a New Economic Regime
Representative Greene Urges H-1B Visa Cuts Amid U.S.-India Trade Tensions
U.S. House Committee Subpoenas Clintons and Senior Officials in Epstein Investigation
Sydney Sweeney Registered as Republican as Controversial American Eagle Ad Sparks Debate
Trump Accuses Major Banks of Politically Motivated Account Denials and Prepares Executive Order
TikTok Removes Huda Kattan Video Over Anti-Israel Conspiracy Claims
Trump Threatens Tariffs on India Over Russian Oil Imports
German Finance Minister Criticizes Trump’s Attacks on Institutions
U.S. Proposes Visa Bond of Up to $15,000 for Some Applicants
U.S. Farmers Increase Lobbying Amid Immigration Crackdown
Elon Musk Receives $23.7 Billion Tesla Stock Award
Texas House Paralyzed After Democrats Walk Out Over Redistricting
Mexican Cartels Complicate Sheinbaum’s U.S. Security Talks
Mark Zuckerberg Declares War on the iPhone
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
Tesla Seeks Shareholder Approval for $29 Billion Compensation Package for Elon Musk
Nvidia is cutting prices on its RTX 50-series graphics cards after sales slowed and inventories piled up
Ghislaine Maxwell Transferred to Minimum-Security Prison Amid Ongoing DOJ Discussions
U.S. Tariffs Surge to Highest Levels in Nearly a Century Under Second Trump Term
Matt Taibbi Slams Media for Role in Russiagate Narrative
Pilots Call for Mental Health Support Without Stigma
All Five Trapped Miners Found Dead After El Teniente Mine Collapse
Ong Beng Seng Pleads Guilty in Corruption Case Linked to Former Singapore Transport Minister
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
Italy Fines Shein One Million Euros for Misleading Sustainability Claims
×