February 11, 2009 4:37 PM
- Text
Old And New Mix At Concert For Diana
(CBS/AP)
Waving their arms in the air with 70,000 fans at Wembley Stadium, princes William and Harry celebrated the life of their mother, Princess Diana, on what would have been her 46th birthday Sunday at a concert they organized.
William, 25, rocked his hips as Canadian pop star Nelly Furtado belted out her song "Maneater" — to the embarrassment of younger brother Harry, 22, who shook his head and laughed.
After Elton John opened the show with "Your Song," the princes took to the stage to greet the stadium crowd — and 500 million more watching the event live worldwide in 140 countries.
"This evening is about all that my mother loved in life: her music, her charity and her family and friends," William said. Harry added a special message for his army unit, currently serving in Iraq.
"I would also like to take this opportunity to say hi to all the guys in A Squadron of the Household Cavalry, who are serving out in Iraq at the moment.
"I wish I was there with you. I'm sorry I can't be. But to all of those on operations at the moment, we'd both like to say 'Stay safe."'
Harry, a second lieutenant in the regiment, was banned from going to Iraq for security reasons.
2 The memorial concert featured music from 24 acts including some of Diana's favorites, like Tom Jones, and younger performers Kanye West, Joss Stone, Fergie, Sean "Diddy" Combs and Lily Allen.
Combs performed an emotive rendition of "Missing You" - a cover of The Police's 1983 "Every Breath You Take."
"Ten years ago Princess Diana, she went to a better place, and today we celebrate her rebirth," Combs said. "I love you Diana, we miss you."
The old and new merged during Jones' set when he brought Stone on to sing a soulful duet of "Ain't That A Lot Of Love" while Aerosmith's Joe Perry sat in on guitar.
Ex-British prime minister Tony Blair was among those who recorded a video greeting. His message was booed as he appeared on screen, but the crowd cheered when he paid tribute to William and Harry — the second and third in line to the British throne, respectively.
"I know their mother would be very proud of them," Blair said.
Weeks of soggy weather lifted Sunday as the sun peeked out from behind the gray clouds rolling over Wembley Stadium, Britain's biggest.
"Pray for sun!" Duran Duran lead singer Simon LeBon told the crowd as the band broke into "Sunrise," followed by "Rio," which they dedicated to Diana.
Rod Stewart also joked about the weather at the end of his set, saying "it usually rains when I perform. Well done!"
Prince William and Prince Harry enjoyed the performance surrounded by their friends. According to VH1, the princes had more potential guests than they had complimentary seats, so they put the names of all their potential guests into a hat and drew the names of the lucky ones that would get tickets.
Harry's girlfriend Chelsy Davy was at his side. William was dateless - though his ex, Kate Middleton, was in the crowd and, according to some in the know, maybe back in the picture, reports CBS News correspondent Richard Roth.
William's Clarence House office has declined to comment on media reports that the two are back together.
Tickets for the show were $90, and proceeds benefited the Princess Diana Memorial and Patronage Fund; Centrepoint UK of which Prince William is a royal patron; and Sentebale, a new charity founded by Prince Harry and Lesotho's Prince Seeiso to help vulnerable children in the African country.
Security for the event was increased after the discovery of two unexploded car bombs in central London on Friday and an attack on Glasgow airport on Saturday that involved a Jeep Cherokee slamming into the main terminal and bursting into flames.
William, 25, rocked his hips as Canadian pop star Nelly Furtado belted out her song "Maneater" — to the embarrassment of younger brother Harry, 22, who shook his head and laughed.
After Elton John opened the show with "Your Song," the princes took to the stage to greet the stadium crowd — and 500 million more watching the event live worldwide in 140 countries.
"This evening is about all that my mother loved in life: her music, her charity and her family and friends," William said. Harry added a special message for his army unit, currently serving in Iraq.
"I would also like to take this opportunity to say hi to all the guys in A Squadron of the Household Cavalry, who are serving out in Iraq at the moment.
"I wish I was there with you. I'm sorry I can't be. But to all of those on operations at the moment, we'd both like to say 'Stay safe."'
Harry, a second lieutenant in the regiment, was banned from going to Iraq for security reasons.
The princess died Aug. 31, 1997, along with her boyfriend Dodi Fayed and their driver when their Mercedes crashed inside the Pont d'Alma tunnel, while media photographers pursued them.
Photos: Concert for Diana
Combs performed an emotive rendition of "Missing You" - a cover of The Police's 1983 "Every Breath You Take."
"Ten years ago Princess Diana, she went to a better place, and today we celebrate her rebirth," Combs said. "I love you Diana, we miss you."
The old and new merged during Jones' set when he brought Stone on to sing a soulful duet of "Ain't That A Lot Of Love" while Aerosmith's Joe Perry sat in on guitar.
Ex-British prime minister Tony Blair was among those who recorded a video greeting. His message was booed as he appeared on screen, but the crowd cheered when he paid tribute to William and Harry — the second and third in line to the British throne, respectively.
"I know their mother would be very proud of them," Blair said.
Weeks of soggy weather lifted Sunday as the sun peeked out from behind the gray clouds rolling over Wembley Stadium, Britain's biggest.
"Pray for sun!" Duran Duran lead singer Simon LeBon told the crowd as the band broke into "Sunrise," followed by "Rio," which they dedicated to Diana.
Rod Stewart also joked about the weather at the end of his set, saying "it usually rains when I perform. Well done!"
Prince William and Prince Harry enjoyed the performance surrounded by their friends. According to VH1, the princes had more potential guests than they had complimentary seats, so they put the names of all their potential guests into a hat and drew the names of the lucky ones that would get tickets.
Harry's girlfriend Chelsy Davy was at his side. William was dateless - though his ex, Kate Middleton, was in the crowd and, according to some in the know, maybe back in the picture, reports CBS News correspondent Richard Roth.
William's Clarence House office has declined to comment on media reports that the two are back together.
Tickets for the show were $90, and proceeds benefited the Princess Diana Memorial and Patronage Fund; Centrepoint UK of which Prince William is a royal patron; and Sentebale, a new charity founded by Prince Harry and Lesotho's Prince Seeiso to help vulnerable children in the African country.
During the telecast, short segments called "Diana and Me" were aired in between the performances. Each segment featured different people from photographers to beneficiaries of her charity work, talking about their personal encounters with the princess.
Photos: Backstage With The Princes
Security for the event was increased after the discovery of two unexploded car bombs in central London on Friday and an attack on Glasgow airport on Saturday that involved a Jeep Cherokee slamming into the main terminal and bursting into flames.
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