Diana documentary – a heartbreaking picture of her sons’ grief

This August will mark the twentieth anniversary of the death of Princess Diana.

Last night's ITV documentary Diana, Our Mother: Her Life and Legacy showed the princess' real legacy: William and Harry, the men she was parted from as boys. The 90-minute documentary film was a heartfelt, honest and moving tribute from Diana's sons, that reduced may viewers to tears. Friends of the late princess also shared their own intimate memories of her for the first time, reminding us of the real woman and mother behind the public face of the House of Windsor. The programme's producer, Nicolas Kent, said the documentary was intended as "a film, that in years to come, the princes could show their children." Indeed, it was William and Harry's honesty about losing their mum and their individual experiences of grief that made the film so incredibly moving. William, now a parent himself, credited his mother for her emotional openness and "showing what feelings meant, and how important it was to feel." Describing his personal experience of grief he commented:

"You don’t quite know who you are, what you're doing, or what's going on."

Harry, meanwhile, lamented the fact that the royal household's frantic schedules often meant a lack of quality time with his mum:

"I never enjoyed speaking to my parents on the phone, and we spent far too much time speaking on the phone rather than speaking to each other, because of...just the way the situation was."

Whatever the filmmaker's intention may have been, Diana, Our Mother was a moving picture of two young men discussing - like many others in the same situation - their memories, regrets, and how they continue to get through each day without their beloved mum.