Sir Elton John’s “Candle In The Wind”
Dean fought for his appearance at Diana’s funeral
Elton John at the memorial service for Princess Diana on September 6, 1997 at Westminster Abbey.
© getty / Mike Maloney / Mirrorpix / Getty Images
Documents prove: Sir Elton John should almost not have sung “Candle In The Wind” at Princess Diana’s funeral service.
There was resistance to the appearance of Sir Elton John (74) at the funeral service for Princess Diana (1961-1997) in Westminster Abbey. His song, which was repositioned for Diana from “Candle In The Wind” (1973) to “Goodbye, England’s Rose”, was “too sentimental”, so the fear apparently at the time. This is evident from the documents that the National Archives have now released and from which “Mail Online” is quoted.
The Dean of Westminster, Rev. Dr. Wesley Carr, but had personally appealed to Buckingham Palace to allow the British superstar to sing his song at their memorial service on September 6, 1997. It would be a “generous” gesture after the public turned against the royal family following the tragedy. The pastor was successful and Sir Elton John’s appearance became one of the most memorable moments of the service at Westminster Abbey.
Accidental death in Paris
Princess Diana and her boyfriend at the time, Dodi Al-Fayed (1955-1997) – son of Harrods owner Mohamed Al-Fayed (92) – died on August 31, 1997 in a car accident in Paris, causing a great wave of public grief.
“Candle In The Wind” was originally written to commemorate Marilyn Monroe (1926-1962).