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Princes plan pop concert for Diana

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LONDON, England -- Princes William and Harry say they plan a pop concert and memorial service to mark the 10th anniversary of the death of their mother Diana, Princess of Wales.

The concert will feature music from Diana's favorite bands, ballet and musicals and will be "full of energy, full of the sort of fun and happiness which I know she would have wanted," William said in an interview released to the media on Tuesday.

Duran Duran will perform along with Elton John, who sang "Candle In The Wind" at Diana's funeral. (Watch as the princes unveil concert plans Video)

The "Concert for Diana" at the yet-to-be-completed Wembley Stadium, near London, on July 1, will be staged when the princess would have turned 46, the princes said.

It will also include a performance by the English National Ballet and songs by Andrew Lloyd Webber in honor of Diana's love of dancing and theater.

The memorial service will take place in London on August 31, 10 years to the day since the princess died in a car crash in Paris.

Diana's siblings Earl Spencer, Lady Sarah McCorquodale and Lady Jane Fellowes will gather with Queen Elizabeth, the Duke of Edinburgh, the prince's father, the Prince of Wales and their stepmother, the Duchess of Cornwall. The princes also said their mother's family would be invited too.

"The service is going to include both sides of the family, our mother's side and our father's side -- everyone getting together. It should be a good occasion," said Prince Harry in a televised interview.

The venue for the memorial service has yet to be announced. William said he wanted the pop concert to be "the best birthday present" his mother ever had and revealed the line-up would be inspired by her musical tastes.

'Purely about her'

William, seated next to his brother and looking relaxed in a blue shirt, said: "Next year we hope to commemorate and celebrate our mother's life, as it's been 10 years since she died, with a memorial service on August 31 in London.

"And then a concert, a tribute concert, celebrating her life on July 1 on her birthday."

He went on to say: "We've decided that it's going to be called Concert for Diana, because obviously the evening is going to be purely about her.

"And as we both want to make sure, first and foremost, the evening is for her. It's to remember her and to commemorate her life and celebrate it."

William added: "Well, we both wanted to put our stamp on it. We want it to represent exactly what our mother would have wanted, how she was and all that sort of thing.

"So therefore the church service alone isn't enough. We wanted to have this big concert with, you know, full of energy, full of the sort of fun and happiness which I know she would have wanted.

"And on her birthday as well, it's got to be the best birthday present she ever had.

"The main purpose is to celebrate and to have fun and to remember her in a fun way."

Diana was a great fan of music and musicals and the concert line-up will reflect her tastes. William said: "The idea is we wanted to get artists that our mother really loved, and then artists that both Harry and I enjoy, and in the middle with the ballet and Andrew Lloyd Webber -- obviously she loved her dancing and her musicals.

"So with that you've got a sort of something different, it's not just any old concert. It's going to be different and it's going to be interesting."

He added jokingly: "If it works, it will be brilliant. If it doesn't, then we won't be in the country."

Harry described how they would be making their own appearance at Wembley Stadium: "We'll be kicking around, we'll be there ... we should be on stage at some point.

"Probably at the beginning of the night -- not towards the end."

Commenting on the memorial service, he added: "The service is going to include both sides of the family, our mother's side and our father's side -- everyone getting together.

"It should be a good occasion and lots of loud hymns, 'I Vow To Thee My Country,' all the good ones. And no, it should be a very sort of simple and nice service."


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The princes said they would probably appear on stage during the pop concert at the new Wembley Stadium.

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