Days before the 25th anniversary of the death of late Diana, Princess of Wales, a car driven by her in the 1980s was sold for 650,000 pounds ($764,000) at auction, Saturday.
The Ford Escort RS Turbo Series 1, which belonged to the late Diana, was seen during a preview of an auction at Silverstone circuit, in Northamptonshire, England, Friday, Aug. 26, 2022.
Silverstone Auctions said there was “fierce bidding” for the black Ford Escort RS Turbo before the sale closed. The U.K. buyer, whose name was not disclosed, paid a 12.5% buyer’s premium on top of the selling price, according to the classic car auction house.
Britain and Diana’s admirers worldwide are preparing to mark a quarter century since her death. She died in a high-speed car crash in Paris on Aug. 31, 1997.
Diana drove the Escort from 1985 to 1988. She was photographed with it outside boutique shops in Chelsea and restaurants in Kensington. She preferred to drive her own car, with a member of her security team in the passenger seat.
The RS Turbo Series 1 was typically manufactured in white, but she got it in black to be more discreet.
Ford also added features for her security, such as a second rear-view mirror for the protection officer.
The car has just under 25,000 miles on it.
Last year, another Ford Escort that Diana used sold at auction for 52,000 pounds ($61,100).
Diana’s death
In the early hours of 31 August 1997, Diana, Princess of Wales, died from the injuries she sustained in a car crash in the Pont de l’Alma tunnel in Paris, France. Dodi Fayed, Diana’s partner, and Henri Paul, the driver of the Mercedes-Benz W140 S-Class, were pronounced dead at the scene. Their bodyguard, Trevor Rees-Jones, was severely injured, but survived the crash.
Some media claimed the erratic behaviour of the paparazzi following the car, as reported by the BBC, had contributed to the crash.
In 1999, a French investigation found that Paul, who lost control of the vehicle at high speed while intoxicated by alcohol and under the effects of prescription drugs, was solely responsible for the crash.
He was the deputy head of security at the Hôtel Ritz and had earlier goaded paparazzi waiting for Diana and Fayed outside the hotel.
Anti-depressants and traces of an anti-psychotic in his blood may have worsened Paul’s inebriation.
In 2008, the jury at a British inquest returned a verdict of unlawful killing through grossly negligent driving by Paul and the following paparazzi vehicles.
Some media reports claimed Rees-Jones survived because he was wearing a seat belt, but other investigations revealed that none of the occupants of the car were wearing them.
Diana was 36 years old when she died.
Her death caused an unprecedented outpouring of public grief in the United Kingdom and worldwide, and her funeral was watched by an estimated 2.5 billion people.
The royal family was criticized in the press for their reaction to Diana’s death.
Public interest in Diana has remained high and she has retained regular press coverage in the years after her death.