Princess Diana remembered, 25 years after her death

She was 36 when she was killed in a car crash in a Parisian tunnel as her driver Henri Paul was fleeing paparazzi. Her companion Dodi Fayed, son of billionaire Mohamed Al-Fayed, and Paul also died in the crash.

Princess Diana visited Sussex on many occasions, making her mark wherever she went and charming those she met.

Princess Diana met children with disabilities at a Red Cross adventure camp in her first official visit to Sussex

On her first official visit, in July 1985, she met children at a Red Cross adventure camp for youngsters with disabilities at Hindleap Warren, in Forest Row.

In a diary entry from the time, then-chairwoman of the Activenture camp Eileen Nicol said: “The Princess of Wales was charming. She has so much compassion for the children. She spoke to every one of them.”

Diana met Body Shop founder Anita Roddick the following year at the store’s headquarters in Littlehampton, with Anita giving the princess a demonstration of some of the products.

Princess Diana with broadcaster David Frost in Arundel after attending the wedding of the then Earl of Arundel

In 1987, the Princess of Wales returned to Sussex at Arundel Cathedral to attend the wedding of her friend Edward Fitzalan-Howard, then Earl of Arundel, and fiancee Georgina Gore.

After the Queen opened the North Terminal at Gatwick Airport in 1988, Diana listened in to air traffic control dialogue during a visit to the control tower.

During a visit to Eastbourne in 1989, Diana spoke to residents at the Eastbourne Disabled Housing Trust and also to swimmers at a swimming pool.

One cause close to Diana’s heart was Aids and she became patron of the National Aids Trust, working to de-stigmatise the condition at the height of its spread.

Diana greeting member of the public at the opening of the International Congress for the Family at the Brighton Centre

After opening the International Congress for the Family at the Brighton Centre in July 1990, which was stormed by a group of gay activists, Diana went on to speak to people infected with the virus at the Sussex Aids Centre in Kemp Town later that day.

Diana’s last visit to the county before her untimely death was a fleeting one, catching the Gatwick Express train from Victoria with sons William and Harry in April 1997, as they prepared to fly to the Caribbean.

Born into the British aristocracy, Diana gained the title of Lady Diana Spencer in 1975 when her father inherited the title of Earl Spencer.

She married Prince Charles in July 1981 and was given the official title of Princess of Wales, which was still formally acknowledged even after the marriage came to an end in 1996.

Her tragic death on August 31, 1997, happened while on a trip to Paris with Dodi Fayed, who she was dating at the time. The car they were driven in lost control at the entrance to an underpass, striking a passing Fiat and colliding head-on with a pillar at 65mph. The Princess of Wales died in hospital after suffering extensive injuries in the crash.

The Argus front page on August 31, 1997, the day Princess Diana died

Her death prompted an outpouring of grief from people across the country and around the world, with more than one million bouquets left at her London residence at Kensington Palace.

Churchgoers in Brighton left flowers at the altar of St Peter's Church, with many of the congregation in tears as special prayers were said.

Speaking to The Argus at the time, then-leader of Brighton and Hove Council Lord Bassam said: “It is a terrible tragedy. I think the nation has lost someone who had a powerful social conscience.

“She had a passion for important issues such as Aids and was brave enough to bring them to public attention.”

Tony Blair, Prime Minister at the time of Diana’s death, described her as the “people’s princess”, a moniker that continues to be used to this day.

Meanwhile, hundreds of visitors at the Shoreham Airshow held a minute of silence in tribute to Diana on the day of her death, with flags lowered to half-mast in mourning.

A flag at the Shoreham Airshow was lowered to half-mast in mourning of Princess Diana

A visitor to the airshow, Lynda Waterman, from Dolphin Road in Shoreham, said at the time: “I was devastated this morning.

“I work nights and heard it on the radio when it was first announced. I thought it was a hoax at first.

“I think the whole world will be lost without her. Her sons will be more devastated than anybody - I’ve got two young sons myself.”

Diana’s funeral took place on September 6, with the Queen making a rare address to the nation the night before.

In the speech, the Queen paid tribute to Diana and said: “She was an exceptional and gifted human being. In good times and bad, she never lost her capacity to smile and laugh, nor to inspire other with her warmth and kindness.

“I admired and respected her - for her energy and commitment to others, and especially for her devotion to her two boys.”

Speaking recently about Diana, Prince Harry said: “There isn’t a day during the past two and a half decades I haven’t thought about the mark she left not only on me and my brother but on all our lives.”