On 29 June 1994 Princess Diana stepped out of her limo to attend a gala dinner at the Serpentine Gallery in London – and caused quite a stir. She was wearing a fitted, black, off-the-shoulder dress with a chiffon train that fluttered in the wind.
The revealing ensemble was unusual for a member of the typically buttoned-up royal family – but that’s not the full reason it grabbed the headlines… Diana was showing her curves in this head-turning little black dress on the very night Prince Charles was confessing on national television that he had been unfaithful to her. Despite the perceived humiliation, Diana kept her scheduled dinner date at the Vanity Fair-hosted gala.
“Of course, Diana knew that all eyes were going to be on her,” PEOPLE magazine’s Brittany Talarico explained previously. “She didn’t have to say anything with words. It was a fashion response – that dress was her clear message to Charles and the world.”
It was dubbed Diana’s ‘revenge dress’ and its cultural impact lives on.
Princess Diana’s revenge dress lives on
Amelia and Eliza Spencer
December, 2024
Most recently, Princess Diana’s nieces, Amelia and Eliza Spencer, channeled their aunt’s iconic revenge dress when they wore black strapless gowns to the 2024 London Fashion Awards. And they aren’t the only royals who have followed in Diana’s ground-breaking fashion footsteps.
The dress the princess wore on that history-making night in 1994, just three years before her untimely death, lives on as a fashion icon.
Meghan Markle
December, 2024
Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, in her own revenge dress in December 2024.
Arriving solo to the Paley Honors Gala, the 43-year-old wore a captivating strapless gown with a thigh-high split from Oscar de la Renta, paired with a custom Logan Hollowell necklace, Cartier Love necklace, Lorraine Schwartz and Engender rings, and kitten heels from Celine.
Catherine, Princess of Wales
December, 2011
Princess Catherine channeled William’s late mother with this version of the sleeveless black dress in December 2011.
This velvet gown was a sensational winter look by Alexander McQueen that had been modified from the brand’s label’s ‘Strapless Velvet Gown’ – which unsurprisingly sold out very shortly after she stepped out in this custom frock.
Queen Camilla
November, 1995
Camilla caused her own stir in 1995, when she attended a party at the Ritz in London, wearing something surprisingly similar to Diana’s revenge dress!
It was a huge year for the now Queen with her divorce from Andrew-Parker Bowles. The look was paired with a deep red, regal cape and an emerald choker.
