A year ago this weekend the world learned about the tragic death of Diana, the Princess of Wales. Her loss affected millions. Reporter Simon Ashberry looks back on the event that rocked the world and recalls the sombre mood of a nation during her funeral.

IT WOULD be wrong to say it brought Britain to a standstill.

In fact, most of us slept through the final minutes and hours of the life of Diana, Princess of Wales.

Only night owls, shift workers and revellers returning home from late night clubbing were aware of the car crash which was to give an air of unreality to the days that followed.

And it truly was with a sense of disbelief that the nation heard news of Diana's death that fateful morning a year ago. It was hard to take in for staunch monarchists and royal sceptics alike as we woke bleary-eyed to our Sunday cereal.

Details were sketchy at first and initial bulletins that flashed across the wires around the world reported that Diana had received only minor injuries and the confusion was reflected in the conflicting headlines of some of the early Sunday papers.

In fact, both she and her millionaire companion Dodi Fayed perished as a result of the accident.

The black Mercedes 600 they were in had lost control and ploughed into a wall as it entered an underpass near the River Seine in Paris.

Some witnesses said the car had been travelling as fast as 120mph. Seven photographers who had been following were questioned by police after the crash and there was a swift sense of revulsion among the general public at the perceived behaviour of the paparazzi.

But amid the question marks that linger still today about the exact circumstances of the crash, the stark fact remained that Dodi Fayed and the French chauffeur Henri Paul had been killed outright and Diana had died at 4am in hospital after surgeons had fought in vain for more than two hours to save her life.

The sense of shock was felt as keenly in Bradford as anywhere else in the country.

Normal life seemed almost impossible. Diana's death was the only topic of conversation and many events, including a pop concert at Myrtle Park in Bingley, were cancelled by the dozen as organisers deemed them to be inappropriate on such a black day.

An emotional service was conducted by the Provost of Bradford, the Very Reverend John Richardson, at the city's cathedral on the night of her death.

The first floral tributes were laid within hours of Diana's death, gathering first on the steps of the chancel and then being moved to a spot close to where the Queen had months earlier for the Royal Maundy Service.

Later, the cathedral extended its opening hours to accommodate the huge numbers of people wanting to pray, light candles and sign a condolence book there. A second book was also made available in Centenary Square and others were placed at Town Halls around the district.

Tributes were also paid by Bradford people who had met the Princess and whose lives and work had been touched by her.

Cystic fibrosis sufferer Sharon Carter, from Horton Bank Top, spoke of her sadness at the death of Diana, whose 30th birthday party she had attended as a representative of the Martin House Hospice near Wetherby.

And high praise in the wake of the tragedy also came from charities she had supported, including the Lesbian and Gay Postal Action. Dr Austin Allen, co-ordinator of the Queensbury-based charity, recalled the uplifting effect of Diana's visits to AIDS sufferers.

As the reality of her death sank in, preparations for the funeral began, with hundreds of shops and businesses announcing they were planning to close for the day.

As details of the service at Westminster Abbey were released, it became clear that it was be one of the most emotional funerals in history. Ten people who were involved in the Bradford fire were among those invited in memory of Diana's support for the charity appeal set up in the wake of the disaster.

Truly the People's Princess

London is probably the closest thing we've got to a 24-hour city, writes Simon Ashberry. But its streets can never have witnessed anything like the extraordinary scenes of the night before the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales. I arrived in the capital at 4am on the overnight National Express coach from Bradford Interchange. Even at that unearthly hour, the roads around Buckingham Palace and towards Westminster Abbey thronged with people.

Later as the gun carriage bearing Diana's coffin made its agonisingly slow way towards Westminster Abbey, the sombre mood was unlike anything I had ever experienced in similarly large crowds at soccer matches or pop concerts. Standing in the middle of that mass of ordinary people as the music and words of the funeral service boomed out over the PA, it was hard not to feel that Diana really was the people's princess.

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