Charity Concert Celebrates Princess Diana's Life

July 2, 2007 — -- Princes William and Harry hosted a major memorial concert for their mother, Princess Diana, this weekend, marking the 10th anniversary of her death and what would have been her 46th birthday.

About 70,000 people gathered at Wembley Stadium for the A-list event. The star-studded show featured some of the world's biggest pop idols including Elton John, the Black Eyed Peas, Lily Allen and rapper Pharrell Williams. Many of Diana's favorites, like the English National Ballet, also performed.

Large crowds in a country now on its highest level of alert for a terrorist attack was addressed with a beefed-up security effort including 450 extra police, sniffer dogs, and emergency vehicles to reassure ticket holders they'd be safe.

Author and ABC News contributor Tina Brown said even though some people were very tense at the concert, a feel-good vibe took over the event.

"This evening is about all that our mother loved in life -- her music, her dance, her charities, and her family and friends," Prince William said.

For Diana's sons, the night served as a reminder of their mother.

Prince Harry also acknowledged another special person, his army mate serving in Iraq.

"I wish I was there with you," he said. "I'm sorry I can't be."

Brown said Harry was disappointed when he found out three days before deployment he would not go.

"Harry was very, very sad indeed to find out he was not going to Iraq." The younger prince even made a will, Brown said.

But ultimately the concert represented what Diana was best known for -- giving a voice to those who often had none and the special way she connected with those less fortunate.

"The qualities she demonstrated are what our troubled world sorely needs," said former South African President Nelson Mandela.

Adding glamour and gossip to the event was one of the guests sitting in the royal box -- Harry's girlfriend Chelsy Davey, who made her first public appearance. William's former girlfriend Kate was with other guests of the princes, but not seated with William, though her presence still sparked rumors of a reconciliation between the two.