Prince William & Prince Harry Open Up About Princess Diana's Death

“I just remember hiding behind my fringe basically, at a time when I had a lot of hair, and my head’s down a lot — so I’m hiding behind my fringe.” William, who was 15 at the time, said “it was kind of like a tiny bit of safety blanket if you like. I know it sounds ridiculous, but at the time I felt if I looked at the floor and my hair came down over my face, no one could see me.”

Prince Harry also talked about walking behind his mother’s coffin in the funeral cortege, though he was only 12. Though he had previously told Newsweek magazine that this was not something any “child should be asked to do,” he appeared in the program to suggest that in hindsight, he was glad to have taken part.

“I think it was a group decision, but before I knew it I found myself, you know, with a suit on, with a black tie, white shirt I think, and I was part of it,” Prince Harry said. “Genuinely, I don’t have an opinion whether that was right or wrong — I’m glad I was part of it. Looking back on it now, I’m very glad I was part of it.”

Both said they wanted their mother to proud of them. Prince William believed, though, that walking behind the cortege “goes to another level of duty.”