Princess Diana’s ‘Confidence Levels’ Were at an All-Time High on Her Last Birthday
“Shy Di,” who? Princess Diana was anything but on her last birthday before her death in a Paris, France, car crash. According to a body language expert, Diana exuded confidence and an “inner steel” at a gala event in London, England.
Diana’s last birthday didn’t include her ‘doe-eyed look’
Diana had long since shed her “Shy Di” nickname when she attended the Tate Gallery’s 100-year anniversary party on July 1, 1997, the day she turned 36.
“Diana’s eyes were the most expressive part of her body, showing her emotions like a mood board throughout her marriage to Charles and beyond,” James told Express. “From the age of 19, she had always seemed to have an expression of vulnerability and sadness as an ongoing option. Even when she smiled that doe-eyed look would tend to be there as a fall-back.”
“By this time in her life though, her eyes were sparkling and sustaining a congruent eye smile,” the expert said. “Her chin is up here, rather than lowered in that signature ‘shy-Di’ look, and her confidence levels look at the highest they had been in her life.”
“It was as though she had discovered her inner steel and developed as an independent woman rather than a young bride and tragic wife,” James added.
Princess Diana’s body language wasn’t ‘love-struck girl’ at the Tate Gallery on her birthday in 1997
Furthermore, James said, Diana’s body language on her last birthday suggested “her own choice.”
“Everything about her here looked like her own choice,” the expert said. “From the stunning dress to the sensational body shape after so many years of an eating disorder. And she looked genuinely at peace with her past.”
Diana wore a black Jacques Azagury gown and accessorized with a matching clutch. She finished off the look with an emerald choker most recently worn by her daughter-in-law, Kate Middleton, to the 2022 Earthshot Prize Awards.
At the time, nearly a year had passed since Diana and the now-king’s divorce on Aug. 28, 1996. According to the body language expert, how Diana carried herself showed she’d been confident in the new phase of her life.
James said: “Her body poses, with her arms held away from her torso to create the important ‘up-turned V’ gap under the armpits, which is a splay associated with genuine confidence, had evolved so far from the love-struck girl she used to be.”
Diana had the confidence to wear a ‘revealing’ black dress on her birthday in 1997 compared to her first royal appearance
James also noted how Diana’s last birthday showed how far she’d come since wearing a black gown to a March 1981 event.
“Her first official appearance after her engagement involved another revealing, low-cut black dress that she had worn with awkward discomfort,” the expert said.
Four months before officially joining the royal family, Diana accompanied King Charles III, the then-Prince of Wales, to a Royal Opera House fundraising gala. Diana later called the evening “horrendous” because she didn’t know royal etiquette.
Fast-forward 16 years and Diana once again donned a black gown. Not her famous “revenge dress” but a black dress nonetheless.
While the dresses may have been the same color, Diana, per James, had an entirely different demeanor. “Here, she was clearly aware that every inch of her outfit flattered her in exactly the right way,” the expert said. “And she was finally confident enough to carry it off.”
Diana “looked healthy, happy, and in control of her life at last at this important moment,” James concluded.
Showbiz Cheat Sheet acknowledges conditions and cultures can impact body language and is sensitive to all backgrounds.
