THE DIANA LEGACY

She's gone, but never forgotten. Twenty-eight years after her death, a new book delves into the reasons why Diana, Princess of Wales, continues to transform the House of Windsor and the lives of millions of people around the world.

- PAOLA TOTARO

There is a cafe on a busy street just a stone’s throw from Kensington Palace that’s been going strong for 36 years. In most ways, it is just an ordinary London ‘caff’ serving a mix of typical Brit greasy-spoon fare — eggs, bacon, sausages and filter coffee — alongside a taste of the Middle East — fresh falafel and baba ghanoush. What makes this place different becomes apparent only when you settle onto the red, padded, faux-leather benches and look at the walls which are covered, floor to ceiling, with photographs of Diana, Princess of Wales. No matter where you sit, that famous lowered gaze, upswept fringe and solar smile looks out at you.

The cafe’s owner, Abdul Basit Daoud, Iraqi born and now proudly British, had planned to name his business after himself. Then, morning after morning, he watched police stop traffic on the road outside as Diana’s car passed, dropping William and Harry to school, so Café Diana was born.

The princess even popped in and gave him a photo of herself when she learned a local eatery had opened in her honour. It is a small example of that personal touch for which she was renowned, and which made her the “People’s Princess” even though her blood was bluer than the Windsors’.

I sat in Café Diana on a wet, spring morning a few weeks ago, having coffee with friends before walking through Kensington Gardens and Diana’s memorial, her presence still felt not just in the myriad portraits on the wall, but in the imaginations of those who visit this part of London.

For Edward White, acclaimed biographer and author of the newly released, Dianaworld: An Obsession, Abdul’s story says much about the cultural phenomenon that swept the world when the shy young English beauty married her prince - unhappily and tragically in the end - and which remains influential still today.