The designer behind Princess Diana’s iconic wedding gown is taking legal action against a Las Vegas exhibition where visitors can walk above a replica of the dress’s 25ft train.
Elizabeth Emanuel says the attraction undermines the gown’s artistic value and historical importance by allowing tourists to step across a glass walkway positioned over the replica.
She has filed a lawsuit against five companies connected to Princess Diana & The Royals: The Exhibition, alleging that her designs were reproduced and displayed without her permission.
The dispute took another turn when Emanuel claimed the organisers contacted her former husband, David Emanuel, after talks with her had stalled.
David, who worked with Elizabeth on Diana’s wedding dress, allegedly did not have the authority to approve the creation of a replica.
The former couple designed the ivory silk taffeta gown for Diana’s 1981 wedding at St Paul’s Cathedral. Its dramatic features included voluminous sleeves, elaborate lace and a spectacular train.
Princess Diana’s 25ft train and wedding gown, a replica of which stars in a controversial Las Vegas exhibition, much to the designer’s dismay
Emanuel says the Las Vegas attraction is exhibiting an ‘inferior’ version that could harm her professional reputation. Court documents filed in Nevada state that the organisers first contacted the designers in 2019, with discussions beginning the following year.
The organisers asked the pair to verify who owned the rights to the gown, and Elizabeth provided written confirmation in 2020. However, no deal was reached, and the exhibition team allegedly approached David independently.
The lawsuit says the organisers later hired Belgian artist Isabelle de Borchgrave to create a full-size paper replica. According to the complaint, the copy is so lifelike that visitors only a few feet away could mistake it for Diana’s original dress.
Emanuel is also challenging the alleged unauthorised reproduction of several other outfits she designed for the late princess.
Those designs include the striking black dress Diana wore for her first public appearance after announcing her engagement to Charles, as well as the gold-and-white gown she wore at the Royal Opera House in 1986.
The complaint also refers to replicas of dresses worn by the royal bridesmaids and a pale-blue sequinned gown. Emanuel claims the exhibition has repeatedly used her name without consent, potentially giving visitors the impression that she endorsed the displays.
She says the alleged conduct has left her suffering emotional distress, embarrassment, humiliation and reputational harm.
The designer is seeking financial damages and an injunction that could require the exhibition organisers to withdraw the disputed items.
The five defendants have not yet responded to the claims.
Lady Helen opens up about her grief
Lady Helen Taylor has spoken publicly for the first time about life after the death of her much-loved mother, the Duchess of Kent.
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‘Grief just changes shape, it never goes away,’ says Lady Helen Taylor
The late Duchess of Kent with her daughter in 2008
Katharine, who was married to Queen Elizabeth’s first cousin, the Duke of Kent, died in 2025 at the age of 92.
‘The past year has been especially poignant because my mother died in September, and then our dog died this year,’ Lady Helen, 62, tells me at the launch of the Ever After Garden 2026 in Duke of York Square, Chelsea, west London.
‘Grief changes shape, but it never disappears. It becomes something you learn to carry, and eventually it centres more on the happy memories. I feel my mother is still with me, and that is incredibly comforting.’
Bill Nighy avoids a close shave
Bill Nighy is celebrated for his polished style, but the veteran actor drew the line at one grooming request for his latest film, & Sons.
‘The director wanted me to shave my head, so I phoned my agent and said, “I’m not shaving my head”,’ the 76-year-old Love Actually star tells me. ‘I also had another job afterwards that required me to have some hair. So, as a compromise, I suggested growing a beard.’
Doctor Who writer Russell T Davies explained that he added the ‘T’ to his name to avoid confusion with fellow BBC personality Russell Davies, the presenter of Radio 4’s Brain of Britain. T Davies, 63, then joked: ‘That other Russell Davies paid me £250 for a play he had written, and I never gave it back.’ A spokesman for Russell Davies, 80, tells me: ‘As his agents, we would be delighted if Russell T corrected the mistake after all these years.’
Ronnie Wood caught up in ‘pig hut’ planning dispute
The Rolling Stones’ music features in the John Lewis Christmas campaign, but guitarist Ronnie Wood is facing a less harmonious reception over plans for a guesthouse at his £3million Hertfordshire property.
The 79-year-old musician wants to create an outbuilding for family and friends beside his 15th-century home, which features a tennis court, an ornamental garden and a £40,000 gypsy caravan.
However, council planners have objected to the building’s ‘highly distinctive’ curved roof, warning that it could damage the setting of the Grade II-listed house and the surrounding conservation area.
Historic England also criticised the ‘somewhat eccentric’ barrel-shaped roof, comparing it to a pig arc and saying it was in ‘complete contrast’ with the property’s ‘more traditional’ design.
A decision on the application is expected later this month.
Boris Becker reunites with first wife for her 60th birthday
Few things bring people together quite like a good disco.
A young tennis star Boris Becker with Barbara Feltus
Barbara dazzles in her 60th birthday celebration
Boris Becker, 58, is understood to have reunited with his first wife, Barbara, at her 60th birthday party, which had a 1970s theme. Barbara looked stunning in a silver sequinned jumpsuit. The couple’s eight-year marriage ended after Becker fathered a child with model Angela Ermakova following a brief encounter at Mayfair restaurant Nobu.