A few months ago I attended a private cast and crew screening of The Crown Season 5. It was the first time we got to see the new cast of actors playing the royal characters we’ve watched our entire lives.
In the row ahead of me in the intimate screening room was Elizabeth Debicki, the 32-year-old Australian actress who plays the late Princess of Wales.
Alongside her and clearly a good friend was Amy Roberts, the show’s costume designer, who was responsible for recreating some of the 20th century’s most iconic fashion moments on this series.
After the screening we met for dinner and I sat next to Debicki. She was 1.80m tall and wafer thin, with blond hair that fell below her shoulders, and wore black trousers and a black jacket. I think she was wearing sneakers. She looked stylish, classy but cool.
I complimented Debicki on her performance and told her that I think she captured the late princess perfectly.
“What about the wig?” she asked in her soft Australian accent, which came as a shock after reproducing Diana’s creamy tones perfectly for the past hour and a half. “You think it was perfect?”
The white stuff: Diana at a charity dinner in Washington in 1996, Elizabeth in Cannes in 2013
Royal blue: Diana’s Yuki dress at the London Coliseum in 1997 and Elizabeth in Max Mara at an LA gala in 2019
I replied that indeed I did, and she seemed pleased. Of course, every detail that went into creating her character had to be spot on.
But Debicki needn’t have worried. She perfectly captures the essence of Princess Diana on screen, but you only have to look back at the outfits she’s worn to red carpet events over the past few years to see why, apart from her acting skills, a gift for the casting was Agents of the Crown.
Because as these pictures show, Debicki’s innate style is strikingly similar to Princess Diana’s understated chic.
When Debicki walked the red carpet this week in a black silk crepe strapless Dior dress, with a long scarf of the same fabric draped around her neck and cascading down her back, and embellished with delicate gold bracelets, it was a clear nod to the powder-blue Catherine Walker dress worn by the princess to Cannes in 1987.
But the sartorial similarities don’t end there. From evening dresses to pant suits, Debicki has been channeling Diana for years.
Diana in a midnight blue yuki dress with a bias cut, reportedly costing £35,000 in 1997; Debicki in the elegant Max Mara in 2019. Diana in a black and white dress worn by the Emanuels in Saudi Arabia in 1986; Debicki in a black and white Bally silk dress in 2016.
They may be more than 20 years apart, but the resemblance is almost uncanny.
They may be more than 20 years apart, but the resemblance is almost uncanny. Pictured: Diana and Debicki in striking red and black, Diana in 1990 and Debicki in 2015
As these pictures show, Debicki’s innate style is strikingly similar to Princess Diana’s understated chic. Pictured: Princess Diana in Catherine Walker in 1987, Elizabeth Debicki in black Dior this week
Just look at the cream pinstripe suit Diana wore in 1989 and the version Debicki wore to Sydney in 2017. Then there’s Catherine Walker’s off-the-shoulder lace gown that Diana wore to an event in Washington in 1996, and the slimmer Alex Perry in flesh-colored laces worn by Debicki in 2013.
Princess Diana died in 1997, but her affinity for fashion is uncanny, not least because Debicki’s outfits were worn before the idea of her playing the princess was even considered.
Nothing for these two women foam, ruffles, prints or pretty. Many of Diana’s dresses appear a bit chunky compared to the more elegant styles produced by today’s designers, but Debicki shows how to admire something from the past and translate it into a modern, relevant version.
Like Diana, Debicki knows what works for her frame. Both have elegant broad shoulders, long limbs and know which cuts best show them off.
And let’s not forget their shared body language. It’s not just the clothes that remind us of Diana; There’s that half-smile, the eyes thrown up, the head bowed.
Tall, dark… and beautiful: Diana in midnight blue at the Serpentine Gallery 1993, Elizabeth in Sydney 2018
Bespoke taupe: Diana on holiday in Sardinia in 1997, Elizabeth at Armani’s 2019 fashion show in Paris
Writer and showrunner Peter Morgan met Debicki through her friend Vanessa Kirby, who played young Princess Margaret on previous series. He says: “I knew straight away that Elizabeth had to play Diana. If she hadn’t agreed to play the role, I would have had to find another way to tell the story.”
Storytelling through style is another skill shared by the two women.
The dress Debicki wore to the premiere this week took 300 hours to create by two members of the Dior atelier, and as she walked the red carpet, the fashion house announced that the actress is the new ambassador for Dior Joaillerie.
Debicki’s dress can also be seen as a nod to the dress she wore on that famous night in 1994 – recreated in The Crown – where Diana showed her the power of fashion at a Vanity Fair party at London’s Serpentine Gallery understanding.
Black and white stars: A monochrome dress by the Emanuels for Diana 1986, Elizabeth in Bally silk 2016
Princess Diana died in 1997, but her affinity for fashion is uncanny, not least because Debicki’s outfits were worn before the idea of her playing the princess was even considered. Pinstripe perfection: Diana in a cream suit in 1989, Elizabeth in Sydney in 2017
That was the night her husband confessed to adultery on national television, but the moment she stepped out of her car in a thigh-length, off-the-shoulder black silk dress by Italian designer Christina Stambolian, she sent the world a clear message of empowerment. It was forever known as Revenge Dress.
Will Elizabeth Debicki now be known as the actress who best impersonates the princess?
Hairstylist Sam McKnight, who was responsible for creating Diana’s iconic hairstyle, agrees. “Elizabeth really captured the essence of Diana,” he says. “Diana and Elizabeth are both tall and the clothes hang on them so well.”
McKnight also thinks that Debicki’s wig was just right. What greater seal of approval could she ask for?
Image research: Claire Cisotti