Remember that dress? Well, the so-called "Princess Diana revenge dress" wasn't the only thing that made jaws drop the night she wore it!
Here’s the True Story Behind Princess Diana’s Revenge Dress
Updated on Apr. 11, 2025
What’s the first dress that comes to mind when you think of Princess Diana? Chances are, it might be the one that made front pages around the world in 1994 and that still has royal fans talking more than 30 years later: Princess Diana’s revenge dress. And it wasn’t just the style of this little black dress that made it a showstopper—as you’ve probably surmised from its nickname, there’s a pretty juicy backstory to it.
First, let’s set the scene for you: At the time, Diana had been a member of the royal family for more than a decade, had two young sons and was one of the most popular women in the world. She was also still married to Prince Charles, even though they had been separated for a year and a half.
So what was this dress all about, and why was it such a big deal? Reader’s Digest spoke with royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams and Benjamin Wild, PhD, a cultural historian and professor specializing in fashion narratives at Manchester Metropolitan University, to find out. Read on for all the details on one of the most famous royal outfits in history.
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What was Princess Diana’s revenge dress, exactly?
Princess Diana’s revenge dress was a sexy and daring (for the time) little black dress by Greek designer Christina Stambolian. She wore it to a Vanity Fair gala at London’s Serpentine Gallery on June 29, 1994—the very night her husband, Prince Charles, confessed on British television that he had cheated on her. According to Wild and Fitzwilliams, this iconic look was a bold statement that helped her take control of the narrative of her life. “Diana clearly stole the show that day,” Fitzwilliams says.
As for the dress itself, it was slinky, short and sexy with its off-the-shoulder, cleavage-baring neckline, a serious departure from other royal choices at the time, even for a style icon like Diana. Wild notes that the form-fitting silk gown had an asymmetrical hem, and “there was this black chiffon train that flowed behind her provocatively, revealing quite a lot of the princess’ skin and body.” To complete the head-turning look, Diana paired the dress with black tights, high heels and a multistrand pearl choker with a huge sapphire in the center.
How did it earn the nickname “the revenge dress”?
This daring dress was seen as Diana’s (very) public answer to Charles’s infamous television interview, in which he admitted to an affair with his now-wife, Queen Camilla. The interview was part of a tell-all documentary to mark his 25th anniversary as the Prince of Wales and was meant to show him in a sympathetic light after his separation from Diana in 1991. (She was, after all, loved by millions as “the people’s princess.”) But the plan backfired spectacularly. When interviewer Jonathan Dimbleby asked Charles if he had been “faithful and honorable” during his marriage, he answered with a “yes,” then added: “Until it became irretrievably broken down, us both having tried.” His subtle confession was all it took to land the prince back in hot water.
Princess Diana was well aware of what her ex had said in the interview, even before it aired. “Weeks up until this event, there had been lots of press coverage about the ITV interview, and it was kind of preannounced that he was going to admit that he had been unfaithful,” says Wild. “And the night the whole world talked about Prince Charles and his infidelity, Diana stepped out wearing this really, really striking dress. Without saying anything at all, she reclaimed the narrative and kicked Prince Charles off the front page in a seemingly effortless way.”
Wild adds that Diana had initially declined the invitation to the charity event and had accepted it only two days prior, knowing exactly what was at stake. Of course, this move was brilliant, says Fitzwilliams: “The revenge dress was a triumph for Diana. She told the world in the most dramatic way what she felt and instantly won people’s sympathies. Charles didn’t understand PR. The only thing people remembered from that interview was that he admitted adultery. For him, it was a public relations catastrophe.”
What had Diana originally planned to wear?
Princess Diana had originally planned to wear a Valentino dress to the charity event, but she changed her mind at the last minute. In fact, it was the Italian designer himself who had leaked that news to the press the day before.
As for the Stambolian LBD she ultimately chose, it had actually been sitting in her closet for years before its moment in the spotlight. “Diana had, apparently, bought it three years earlier, but she had never worn it because she considered it to be a little bit too risky,” says Wild. “It was a very different dress to what we had seen the princess wear before—or, in fact, any royal.”
Did this dress break royal protocol?
In all likelihood, yes! The royal family’s dress code calls for modesty, elegance and non-provocative styles for women. Of course, the queen didn’t comment on this flagrant disregard for those unwritten rules, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t discussed behind closed doors. The revenge dress worn by Princess Diana was a purposely defiant and—we’ll use the word again because it’s so apt—provocative choice with its tight fit, low neckline and high hem. Plus, black is a color traditionally reserved for funerals, at least when you’re part of the British royal family.
And that’s not all: Diana’s pearl choker broke some more rules. “Throughout history, pearls symbolized virginity and purity because of the way they are produced. Wearing pearl on the evening that her husband is talking about adultery is very telling,” Wild says. “As a member of the royal family, you are meant to be apolitical, and that includes your own personal views. This was Diana being incredibly personal. And incredibly indiscreet. She was saying exactly what she felt with the help of this dress and necklace.”
How did the public react at the time?
Most of the public, as well as the media, instantly took Princess Diana’s side, despite the risqué style of the dress. “I think people were shocked, but at the same time the mood was very much sympathetic. Everyone understood why she was wearing this dress, so, in that sense, you could say that her choice was very calculating,” says Wild. “People saw a human who was trying [to navigate] these complex and sometimes archaic rules, and at the same time, the public was well aware that she liked to use her body and clothing to make a statement. This was regarded as Diana’s secret power.”
Interestingly enough, while said gown is now commonly known simply as the revenge dress, it had a lot of different names back in 1994. “Some papers like the Times called it the ‘I will show you’ dress. Others referred to it as the ‘Serpentine dress’ because Diana wore it at the Serpentine Gallery, and yet others bluntly called it the ‘F— you’ dress,” says Wild. “Over time, it was the title revenge dress that stuck because it perfectly summed up the whole situation.”
Why are people still so obsessed with this dress?
The revenge dress was undoubtedly one of Princess Diana’s most memorable fashion moments even without the backstory, but that backstory is really why we’re still talking about the dress more than three decades later. “The main focus was on the mistake that Charles made, and that’s what the dress stood and stands for,” says Fitzwilliams. “Without Charles admitting adultery on the same day Diana wore this outfit, we wouldn’t be talking about it still—because Diana probably wouldn’t have worn this particular dress in the first place.”
But there’s larger symbolism at play here too—one that we can all relate to, as well as admire. “[The revenge dress] demonstrates the power of our clothing, the power to say far more with a dress than words could ever do,” says Wild. “It was a public act of revenge and rebellion. The establishment was trying to silence Diana, and she said no to that.”
Beyond that? Let’s not forget that Diana wore the revenge dress just three years prior to her death, so it was “one of the last moments that we saw her really expressing herself through her clothing,” Wild notes. The sadness that prompted this moment, plus the tragedy of her death just a few years later, makes her fashion statement even more poignant.
Where is the revenge dress now?
Scottish collector Graeme Mackenzie bought the revenge dress for $74,000 at an auction in New York on June 25, 1997, just two months before the Princess of Wales died in a car crash in Paris. It was, apparently, Prince William’s idea that his mother auction off 79 of her dresses for charity. (The only well-known one she kept was her wedding gown, which now belongs to her sons, William and Harry.)
Mackenzie still owns Diana’s revenge dress today and, according to media reports, keeps it safe in a bank vault. Every now and then, the dress makes a public appearance to raise money for charity. It has also been part of the exhibition Diana: A Fashion Legacy at Newbridge’s Museum of Style Icons in Kildare, Ireland, where it was shown to mark the 20th anniversary of the princess’ death.
Unsurprisingly, Princess Diana’s revenge dress is also featured in The Crown, even though Netflix had to make do with a (well-made) replica. In late 2024, the dress made headlines again: Diana’s twin nieces, Lady Amelia Spencer and Lady Eliza Spencer, mirrored their late aunt’s showstopping look at the British Fashion Awards in London.
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Reader’s Digest has published hundreds of stories on the British royal family, providing a behind-the-scenes look at the fascinating facets of the monarchy. We regularly cover topics including the latest royal news, the history and meaning behind time-honored traditions, and the everyday quirks of everyone’s favorite family members, from Queen Elizabeth’s daily snack to Prince William’s confessions about his home life. We’re committed to producing high-quality content by writers with expertise and experience in their field in consultation with relevant, qualified experts. We rely on reputable primary sources, including government and professional organizations and academic institutions as well as our writers’ personal experiences where appropriate. For this piece on the Princess Diana revenge dress, Astrid Hofer tapped her experience as a London-based journalist with more than 20 years of experience covering topics including the British royal family. We verify all facts and data, back them with credible sourcing and revisit them over time to ensure they remain accurate and up to date. Read more about our team, our contributors and our editorial policies.
Sources:
- Benjamin Wild, PhD, cultural historian, royal fashion expert and professor specializing in fashion narratives at Manchester Metropolitan University; phone interview, March 24, 2025
- Richard Fitzwilliams, royal expert; phone interview, March 28, 2025
- New York Times: “Prince Charles, in TV Documentary, Admits to Infidelity”
- Vanity Fair: “After splitting from Charles, Princess Diana wanted to celebrate her independence. The summer of 1994 was when her new life began”
- The Telegraph: “Why Princess Diana’s revenge dress is still relevant, 27 years on”
- Newsweek: “Princess Diana’s ‘revenge dress’: The truth behind the gown in ‘The Crown'”
- Forbes: “Princess Diana’s record-breaking gown sells for more than $600,000 at auction”
- InStyle: “Princess Diana’s revenge dress was supposed to look completely different”
- Irish Times: “Princess Diana’s famous ‘revenge dress’ comes to Kildare”
