[3] Two thousand people attended the ceremony in Westminster Abbey[4] while the British television audience was 32.10 million on average, one of the United Kingdom's highest viewing figures ever.

Diana's coffin, draped with the royal standard with a differentiating ermine border (i.e. the Other Members' standard), had been brought to London from the Salpêtrière Hospital, via Vélizy – Villacoublay Air Base, Paris, to RAF Northolt by Diana's former husband Charles, Prince of Wales, and her two sisters on 31 August 1997.

[14] The coffin bore a weight of a quarter of a tonne (250 kg / approx 550 lb) as it was lined with lead,[15] as is tradition with British royalty.

[18] Alastair Campbell later revealed in his diaries that the government and the royal household feared for the security of Prince Charles, believing that he would possibly get attacked by the crowd, thus they ensured that he would be accompanied by his sons.

[22] In his 2023 memoir Spare, Harry claimed that the idea of having the boys walk behind their mother's coffin horrified several adults, in particular their uncle Lord Spencer who described it "a barbarity.

The royal family placed wreaths alongside Diana's coffin in the presence of Britain's living former prime ministers – John Major, Margaret Thatcher, James Callaghan and Edward Heath – and former Conservative MP Winston Churchill, the grandson of World War II-era Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill.

[28] British personalities who attended included Sir Cliff Richard, Sir Elton John, George Michael, Chris de Burgh, Michael Barrymore, Richard Branson, and Richard Attenborough; international guests included US First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton and former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, William J. Crowe, French First Lady Bernadette Chirac, Egyptian First Lady Suzanne Mubarak, Queen Noor of Jordan, Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg, Mariah Carey, Luciano Pavarotti, Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Ruby Wax, Imran Khan and his then wife, Jemima Goldsmith.

[31] The Archbishop of Canterbury, George Carey, and the Dean of Westminster, Wesley Carr, were also present in the abbey and delivered the bidding, the prayers, and the commendation.

Pieces by Johann Sebastian Bach, Antonín Dvořák, Camille Saint-Saëns, Gustav Holst, and other composers were played throughout the ceremony.

From the first couple of lines I wrote [which began "Goodbye England's Rose"], the rest sort of fell into place During the service, Elton John sang a 1997 rendition of "Candle in the Wind", with new lyrics written as a tribute to Diana.

[35][32] Only a month before Diana's death she had been photographed comforting John at the funeral of their mutual friend Gianni Versace at Milan Cathedral.

[37][38] Files released by The National Archives showed that the Dean of Westminster, Wesley Carr, had personally appealed to senior aides at the palace to secure John's performance at the funeral, insisting on the "inclusion of something of the modern world that the princess represented".

A set of rosary beads was placed in her hands, a gift she had received from Mother Teresa, who died the same week as Diana.

Lord Spencer called Burrell's comments "hurtful lies" and said in a statement: "The Queen's standard was removed as part of the ceremony by her own officer in a dignified and pre-agreed manner".

He decided that Diana would be buried where her grave could be easily cared for and visited in privacy by William, Harry, and other Spencer relatives.

On the southern verge of the Round Oval sits the Summerhouse, previously in the gardens of Admiralty House, London, and now adapted to serve as a memorial to Diana.

[52] On the same day, services of commemoration and events honouring the Princess were held in various cities and towns across the United Kingdom and many streets remained deserted with the population watching the funeral broadcast at their homes.

[53] In Manchester the national minute's silence started with "a maroon flare fired by mortar from the roof of the Victorian Town Hall" and ended "by the pealing of a single muffled bell".

[53] A service was held at Llandaff Cathedral, attended by 700 guests, including the Secretary of State for Wales Ron Davies, Cardiff's Lord Mayor Max Phillips, as well as MPs and volunteers from Diana's charities.

[8] David Dimbleby presented the funeral on the BBC, while Trevor McDonald fronted the ITN coverage, and was joined by a team of correspondents including John Suchet and Julia Somerville.

[57] Dimbleby began to follow the footsteps of his father, Richard, in leading the BBC during their coverage of big television events and state occasions.