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‘The Crown’ shows Harry and William learning about Diana’s death. How they say it actually happened

"You feel very, very confused," Prince William has said. "And you keep asking yourself, ‘Why me?’"

Season Six of "The Crown," the most present-day iteration of the series chronicling the royal family's life, has left viewers anxious to see how the show will depict the death of Diana, Princess of Wales.

The first part of the sixth season, released on Nov. 16, builds toward Diana's tragic death at age 36 in 1997, when she died of injuries sustained in a car crash in Paris, along with her partner Dodi Fayed.

In Episode 4, then-Prince Charles, portrayed by Dominic West, sits down on his son Prince William's bed to wake him and share the devastating news the morning after the crash.

"Morning, darling," Charles told William, portrayed by Rufus Kampa. "I'm afraid you're going to have to be very brave."

Prince Harry, played by Fflyn Edwards, can be seen shaking his head in disbelief as he learns of his mother's death.

"These poor boys," Queen Elizabeth II, portrayed by Imelda Staunton, said in the episode.

Princess Diana, Princess of Wales with her sons Prince William and Prince Harry
Princess Diana, Princess of Wales with her sons Prince William and Prince Harry attend the Heads of State VE Remembrance Service in Hyde Park on May 7, 1995 in London.Anwar Hussein / Getty Images

The fifth season of “The Crown“ gave a glimpse into Diana and Charles’ troubled marriage before their divorce in 1996.

In interviews that Prince William and Prince Harry have done over the years, they recalled what it was like for them to learn of their mother's death. At the time, William was 15 and Harry was 12.

In the HBO documentary “Diana, Our Mother: Her Life and Legacy,” Harry said he remembered the last phone call he had with Diana.

“If I’d known that that was the last time I was going to speak to my mother the things that I would — the things I would have said to her. All I do remember regretting for the rest of my life how short that phone call is,” he said. “Looking back now, I have to live with that for the rest of my life.”

Here's how Harry and William found out about their mother's death, in their own words.

Harry remembers how Charles broke the news to him and William

In the BBC documentary “Diana, 7 Days," Harry recalled how he learned of Diana's death and he prided his father for telling him what had gone on.

“One of the hardest things for a parent to have to do is to tell your children that your other parent has died,” he said.

“How you deal with that? I don’t know. But you know, he was there for us. He was the one out of two left, and he tried to do his best and to make sure that we were protected and looked after,” Harry continued. “But ... he was going through the same grieving process as well.”

Royals In Spain
Diana with her sons in 1987.Terry Fincher / Getty Images

William said that he remembered feeling "completely numb," "disorientated" and "dizzy" at the news.

“You feel very, very confused. And you keep asking yourself, ‘Why me?’ All the time, ‘Why? What have I done? Why? Why has this happened to us?’" he said.

William likened hearing the news to an earthquake

In "Diana, Our Mother: Her Life and Legacy," William explained how he felt after hearing that Diana had died.

“There’s nothing like it in the world,” he said. “There really isn’t. It’s like an earthquake has just run through the house and through your life and everything. Your mind is completely split. And it took me a while for it to actually sink in.” 

Diana In Lech
Diana, Princess of Wales and Princes William & Harry riding in a traditional sleigh with in Lech, Austria on March 30, 1993.Jayne Fincher / Getty Images

Scotland is site of William's 'saddest' memories

After Diana's death, Prince William was troubled by memories he had of Scotland.

“Scotland is the source of some of my happiest memories but also some of my saddest. I was in Balmoral when I was told my mother had died,” he said in a speech to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in Edinburgh in May 2021.

“Still in shock, I found sanctuary in the service of Crathie Kirk (Church) that very morning," William continued. "And in the dark days of grief that followed, I found comfort and solace in the Scottish outdoors."

As depicted in Episode 4 of the sixth season of "The Crown," William walked into the woods in the days following Diana's death — at one point not returning to his residence for 14 hours, to the dismay of Charles, Harry and Elizabeth.

William later met his future wife, the former Kate Middleton and now the Princess of Wales, while studying in Scotland.

Diana, Princess of Wales and Princes William & Harry
Diana, Princess of Wales and Princes William & Harry at The 'Thorpe Park' Amusement Park.Julian Parker / Getty Images

Prince Harry said he tried to 'shut down' emotions afterwards

Prince Harry said he took Diana's death very hard. In a 2017 interview with The Telegraph, the prince said he “shut down all his emotions”after losing his mother.

“I can safely say that losing my mum at the age of 12, and therefore shutting down all of my emotions for the last 20 years, had had a quite serious effect not only on my personal life, but also my work as well,” he said.

“I have probably been very close to a complete breakdown on numerous occasions when all sorts of grief and sort of lies and misconceptions and everything are coming to you from every angle," Harry continued.

Prince Harry and Prince William tried to talk 'as best as they could' about Princess Diana's death

After they had lost their mother, Prince William said that his family members tried to talk to him and Harry about what had happened.

“The family came together and Harry and I tried to talk as best we could about it,” he said in the HBO documentary Diana, Our Mother: Her Life and Legacy. “But being so small at that age, it was very difficult to communicate or understand your feelings. It’s ... very complicated.”

Seven days after Princess Diana's death, Prince William and Prince Harry attended her funeral and marched behind their mother's coffin.

The funeral was depicted in Season Six of "The Crown." As William is walking behind her coffin, he asks his grandfather, Prince Philip, a question.

"Why are they crying for someone they never knew?" William asked.

Philip responds: "They're not crying for her. They're crying for you."

Prince of Wales, Prince Harry and Prince William walking behind the funeral cortege of Diana, Princess of Wales on Sept. 6 1997.
Prince of Wales, Prince Harry and Prince William walking behind the funeral cortege at Diana's funeral.Adam Butler / PA Images via Getty Images

While speaking with Newsweek in 2017, Harry recalled how difficult that day was for him.

“My mother had just died, and I had to walk a long way behind her coffin, surrounded by thousands of people watching me while millions more did on television,” he said. “I don’t think any child should be asked to do that, under any circumstances. I don’t think it would happen today.”