Diana & Charles' Wedding

Sarah & Andrew's Wedding

Sophie & Edward's Wedding

"Commemorative Wedding Set"
 
 

Please note: I am a collector, not a dealer. No dolls on this page (or my other websites) are for sale by me. If you are looking to buy, it is suggested you try web sites with secondary online markets (at your own risk).
 
 
 

"The Princess Diana Bride Doll"
"The Prince Charles Bridegroom Doll"
"Princess Diana's Flowergirl"
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

"The Princess Sarah Bride Doll"
"The Prince Andrew Groom Doll"
"The Prince William Doll"

"The Princess Diana Bride Doll"

Just after the royal wedding of Charles & Diana in the early 1980's, the Danbury Mint started a new doll series with the release of "The Princess Diana Bride Doll."  This doll has a porcelain face, hands & feet.  She is 18" high & wears the most authentically scale recreated copies of Diana's wedding gown.  The attention to detail on this doll is remarkable. Her jewelry is comprised of the Spencer Family tiara & Diana's mother's diamond drop earrings, each of which was reproduced with a genuine ¼ pt. diamond.  The train is six feet long & is meant to represent the 25 foot long train of Diana's gown as it trailed down the red carpet of St. Paul's Cathedral during the ceremony.   The doll is accompanied by a maroon vinyl wallet that holds the certificate of authenticity & a wedding story card.    She originally cost $187.50, & unlike most factory produced dolls, has retained her purchase price & then some.    I have read on the Internet different collectors' account that they purchased the original DM Diana in 1981, but that is unsubstantiated.  I bought mine in 1986 & I have poured over all the documentation that came with her to find a copyright or other kind of date without success. The best confirmation of the issue date has been collectors checking advertising in national doll magazines, and this doll didn't show up until 1986.
She was the most popular of the mass marketed porcelain Diana brides until 2003 when the Franklin Mint released their "Portrait of a Bridal Princess," a porcelain portrait doll made to imitate the bridal photo portrait taken by Lord Snowdon. This doll retains her pride of place in a Diana doll collection, mostly for the reason that the gown is accurate to detail and scale. Franklin Mint had the benefit of more dolls and the internet to do its research. Considering the time period during which she was made, and the doll making style at that time, she is a really nice doll.
My guess is that Danbury Mint either hired British dollmaker June Gale (of the British Dollmakers Association) or simply copied her Diana Bride and Clementine Hambro bridesmaid ("flowergirl") that is displayed in the Lilliput Doll Museum in the Isle of Wight. Photo is a postcard sold at the Museum.      Next
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

"The Prince Charles Bridegroom Doll"

The 19" porcelain Prince Charles doll wears the dress uniform of a Royal Navy Commander, under which rank Charles served.  It is accessorized with a dress sword, scads of gold braids & tiny replicas of Charles' military honors & medals.     Next
 

Please do not plagiarize this web page. If you wish to use my text, please write to me. I'm tired of lazy folks who copy my homework using it on eBay. What kind of example are you setting for your children? Send mail to: leona_payne@yahoo.com

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

"Princess Diana's Flowergirl Doll"
 

Clementine Hambro, the great-granddaughter of Sir Winston Churchill & Diana's cousin & smallest bridesmaid, has been immortalized in the form of a 12" doll.  Every tiny detail about the outfit she wore as a five year old is on this doll, from the basket of flowers in her hands to the yellow ribbon around her waist & the floral circlet on her head.  (Side note:  English brides do not have a "flowergirl" in the sense of the  American custom.  They usually have a group of "bridesmaids" chosen from a group of younger teens & small girls, with the eldest usually serving as "chief bridesmaid."  Little Clementine really wasn't "Diana's Flowergirl," she was Diana's most junior bridesmaid.)  Next
 

Please do not plagiarize this web page. If you wish to use my text, please write to me. I'm tired of lazy folks who copy my homework using it on eBay. What kind of example are you setting for your children? Send mail to: leona_payne@yahoo.com

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

"The Princess Sarah Bride Doll"

This beautiful doll is, in my opinion, the best likeness of all six of the Danbury Mint Royal Wedding sets.  Standing 18" high, like Princess Diana, "Princess Sarah" has ¼ point diamond chips in her jewelry--one in her tiara & one in her necklace.  Her train is 5 feet long in faithful recreation of the original.  (Side note:  Fergie never actually was a "princess" in the true sense of rank, altho' a royal duchess is at the same sort of level as a princess.  Her husband was His Royal Highness, The Prince Andrew, Duke of York, therefore she was HRH Sarah, Duchess of York.  If the Queen had not given Andrew the new title of Duke of York on their wedding day, Sarah would have been known as HRH The Princess Andrew.  Wouldn't *that* have looked strange on a doll?)  Next
 

Please do not plagiarize this web page. If you wish to use my text, please write to me. I'm tired of lazy folks who copy my homework using it on eBay. What kind of example are you setting for your children? Send mail to: leona_payne@yahoo.com

 
 
 
 
 
 

"The Prince Andrew Bridegroom Doll"

Prince Andrew is an accessory to the Princess Sarah Bride Doll.  He is 19 inches, & like his brother, wears a dress uniform of the Royal Navy, complete with a dress sword.  A lieutenant at the time of his marriage, Andrew was a hero of the Falklands War in the early 1980's * wears gold braid & medals.  For a male doll, he is rather handsome in a dorky sort of way.  Next
 

Please do not plagiarize this web page. If you wish to use my text, please write to me. I'm tired of lazy folks who copy my homework using it on eBay. What kind of example are you setting for your children? Send mail to: leona_payne@yahoo.com

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

"The Prince William Doll"

At the age of 4, Prince William, Charles & Diana's son, served as a page in Sarah & Andrew's wedding party.  The final doll in the Royal Wedding Collection, Prince Andrew is dressed in a recreation of a Victorian era sailor suit.  He is 13" high & looks adorable, although his hair is a bit browner than his namesake's.   Next
 

Please do not plagiarize this web page. If you wish to use my text, please write to me. I'm tired of lazy folks who copy my homework using it on eBay. What kind of example are you setting for your children? Send mail to: leona_payne@yahoo.com

"The Princess Sophie Bride Doll"

This is merely a wish on my part, no such doll exists.  I have called the Danbury Mint & requested that a Sophie & Edward Wedding set be created, but I'm not holding my breath, as the Customer Service reps I spoke with didn't seem very interested.  The photo above is of the Coalport China figurine created to commemorate the occasion. Next
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

"The Prince Edward Bridegroom Doll"
 

Another wish from me, Edward is a necessary accessory to the Princess Sophie Bride Doll.  I love his yellow waistcoat.  The pages & bridesmaids were adorable & wore mini "Order of the Garter" outfits. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  The Commemorative Wedding Set

 
In response to Diana's untimely death, in 1998, the Danbury Mint released a "Commemorative Edition" of their 1980's Charles & Diana Royal Wedding Dolls.  The Diana is 16½" high.  I'm sure that this smaller version was meant to appease buyers of the first release of the doll, who worried that the value of the original would decrease if there were more made.  While a very pretty doll, she lacked the special features of the first, having only a 2 foot train & no diamonds.

Please note: I am a collector, not a dealer. No dolls on this page (or my other websites) are for sale by me. If you are looking to buy, it is suggested you try web sites with secondary online markets (at your own risk).

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