Prince Harry interested in buying Princess Diana’s ‘revenge dress’

Prince Harry is reportedly interested in buying the black dress worn by his mother, Princess Diana, that is due to go under the hammer at Sotheby's in New York in December, according to celebrity news website RadarOnline.

Prince Harry is reportedly interested in buying the black dress worn by his mother, Princess Diana, that is due to go under the hammer at Sotheby’s in New York in December, according to celebrity news website RadarOnline.

The website, citing an unnamed source, reported that Harry did not want the garment to end up in a private collection and believed it should remain connected to Diana and eventually belong to his wife, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex. The claim has not been independently verified.

“He doesn’t want it disappearing into a collector’s closet,” the source was quoted as saying.

The source added that Harry viewed the dress as a symbol of his mother’s independence and ability to reclaim control of her public image.

“Meghan wearing or simply owning Diana’s revenge dress would be incredibly powerful,” the source said, adding that it would symbolise the two women refusing to let the royal family define them.

Sotheby’s has scheduled the sale for December 9, with the dress estimated to fetch between $150,000 and $300,000. The gown, designed by Greek-born designer Christina Stambolian, is being offered at auction for the first time in nearly three decades.

Diana wore the black, off-the-shoulder silk dress to an event at London’s Serpentine Gallery on June 29, 1994, the same day her then-husband, Prince Charles, acknowledged in a televised interview that he had been unfaithful during their marriage.

The dress subsequently became known as the “revenge dress”, a label associated with Diana’s striking appearance at a time of intense public scrutiny of her marriage.

Diana sold the gown at a charity auction in 1997, shortly before her death at the age of 36 in a car crash in Paris on August 31 that year.