Prince Harry Talks for First Time About Paparazzi Who Photographed Princess Diana as She Died

Prince Harry is opening up about the paparazzi photographers that took pictures of his late mother, Princess Diana, as she was dying in the back of a car following a crash.

The incident happened in Paris two decades ago and had a formative impact on Harry and his older brother, William. In a BBC 1 documentary commemorating the 20th anniversary of Princess Diana's tragic death, titled Diana, 7 Days, Harry reflected on his reaction to the accident.

"One of the hardest things to come to terms with is the fact that the people who chased her into the tunnel were the same people who were taking photographs of her dying in the backseat of her car," Harry said.

At the time that Princess Diana passed, Harry was just 12 years old and William was 15.

"William and I know that, we've been told that numerous times by people that know that was the case," he said. "She had quite a severe head injury, but she was very much alive on the backseat and the same people who caused the accident, instead of helping, were taking photographs of her dying on the back seat."

"And then those photographs made... made their way back to news desks in this country," Harry, who is now 32, said.

As for Prince William, he was determined not to let "all the love and energy" that Princess Diana gave him and Harry "go to waste."

"When you have something so traumatic as the death of you mother at 15, which sadly many people have experienced, it will either make or break you and I wouldn't let it break me," William said.

"I wanted her to be proud of the person I was to become, I didn't want her to be worried, or her legacy to be that William or Harry were completely and utterly devastated by it, and all the hard work and love and energy she put into us when we were younger would go to waste," he added.

Harry and William also spoke out about the moment they learned of their mother's death in the BBC special. Read more here.

Photo Credit: Getty / Tim Graham Photo Library