Princess Diana: Files reveal Elton John's request to attend the funeral
Written byTimes Magazine
According to published files, the dean of Westminster has personally appealed to Buckingham Palace to ensure that Sir Elton John will appear at Princess Diana's funeral.
His Holiness Wesley Carr wrote that this would be "reasonable and generous" to the millions who feel "personally sad." Sir Elton, Diana's friend, performed a revised version of Candle In The Wind at the 1997 convention.
However, documents from the national archives show that there were contingency plans. Copywriter Sir Elton Bernie Topin recently rewrote Marilyn Monroe's Candle In The Wind with new lyrics for Princess Diana, renamed English Rose.
In a note to Dean Wesley Carr, a senior member of the Royal Family, he wrote that the song was played on the radio "all the time." The dean acknowledged that it was unconventional but called for "courage" and "inclusion of something from the modern world that the princess represents."
His death sparked unprecedented public grief as hundreds of thousands of wreaths were left at his Kensington Palace home.
The royal family's indifference angered many to the princess after she divorced Prince Charles and renounced his royal title.
At the time, Dean Carr, who was involved in negotiating services between the palace and Princess Diana's family, said attending her funeral was the most significant thing he had ever done.
The abbey has made sure a young saxophonist is ready to make a solo move, although the dean calls it "second-best shot."
He added that if the words English rose were seen as "too sentimental," he would assume they were not printed in the funeral order.
But he thought such a mood was appropriate given the public's perspective.
Dean Carr, who died in 2017 and was described as "fearless" in his obituary, told a senior member of the royal family, Lieutenant Colonel Malcolm Ross, that he was ready to call "everyone" to discuss the importance of this proposal.
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