Cheerful Harry told worrying William to 'just yank' veil off Diana's statue, says lip reader
The highly-anticipated unveiling of Princess Diana's statue finally happened on July 1, marking what would have been the late Princess of Wales' 60th birthday. Diana's younger son Prince Harry once again flew in from his new home in the US to unveil the statue with brother William — the relationship between the two still reportedly icy. But viewers were greeted by the sight of a cheeky, playful Harry as he joked about the unveiling, claim lip-reading experts after seeing the video of the ceremony. Diana's older son William, however, seemed more collected, as he reminded his younger brother "it's important to unveil it right", a lip reader claimed.
This was Harry, 36, and William's, 39, second reunion since the explosive Oprah Winfrey interview where the Duke of Sussex, and his wife Meghan Markle alleged racism within the royal family. The first reunion of the brothers was at the funeral of grandfather Prince Philip in April this year. As they appeared at the Sunken Garden of Kensington Palace to unveil the statue, the mood from Harry's end seemed quite lighthearted, claim lip readers.
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Expert Jeremy Freeman elaborated to Daily Mail the entirely different demeanor the two brothers exhibited at the unveiling. One of the men told the bothers, "As you pull it, it'll slide over and drop, okay?" Freeman says Harry can then be seen reassuring his brother, "We will be okay," to which William replies: "I don't want anything to go wrong, it’s important we unveil it right." William also demonstrates to Harry how he thinks the cover should be pulled off, to which Harry cheekily replies: "Let's just yank it!"
After the reveal, Freeman observed Harry exclaims: "We did it!" Harry then gushes, "Wow! Isn’t that amazing," to which William replies, "What a reveal." While walking down the steps towards the unveiling, William had also been observed saying, "Oh my, this is amazing." Harry too agreed, as Freeman claims he then said: "This is spectacular." William was also reportedly observed by another lip reader, telling his aunts, "It will be wonderful you’ll... see it from all angles."
Over 4,000 flowers were planted around the Sunken Garden, which was one of the favorite locations of the late princess. Five gardeners have reportedly planted the flowers over the span of 1,000 hours, ever since work on the statue began in 2019. A plinth engraved with her name and the date of the unveiling is right beneath the statue. In front of the statue now lies a paving stone engraved with an extract from the poem 'The Measure of a Man', which had also featured in the 2007 memorial service of the princess.
The private ceremony of the statue's unveiling started at 2 pm local time, and was attended by Diana's siblings, the Earl Spencer, the Lady Sarah McCorquodale, and the Lady Jane Fellowes, along with sculptor Rank-Broadley, garden designer Pip Morrison, and Chair of Historic Royal Palaces Rupert Gavin. The statue aims to reflect Diana's warmth and elegance that was highlighted throughout her work and the impact she had on countless others. The statue of Diana also sees her surrounded by three children, who represent the universality and generational impact of her work. The portrait and fashion sense are emblems of her work and confidence in becoming a figure for humanitarian causes.