A CAPTIVATING photograph of Princess Diana taken by an Ilkley man is part of a collection marking the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.

Ian Crawshaw says his picture, taken in 1985, was “just a lucky shot” - but the image has gained national recognition in a unique book of photographs of the Royal Family. The Crown from the Crowd is being presented to the royal couple as a “gift from the people” ahead of their wedding on Saturday.

The book contains more than 250 previously unseen, lost or forgotten images from the nation’s ‘attic archives’.

It was put together by Photobox after Jennie Bond, who served as the BBC’s Royal Correspondent for 14 years, appealed for people across the UK to search their attics and albums for pictures.

The book features eight chapters ranging from Country Life to Pomp and Ceremony, each with an introduction by author and social historian Dominic Sandbrook. It is available from www.crownfromthecrowd.com and all profits will be donated to Help for Heroes.

Jennie Bond said: “Prince Harry’s choice of bride – and the way she has been welcomed into the Royal Family graphically illustrates how far the monarchy has come since 1936 when Edward VIII was forced to choose between his love for another American divorcee, Wallis Simpson, and the throne.

“Evidence of this evolution can be clearly seen across the pages of this brilliant new book. The great charm is that the photos taken by the crowds over many decades capture all too rare moments when members of the Royal Family look genuinely relaxed and unguarded.

“I think it’s a wonderful gift from the people to celebrate Prince Harry and Meghan’s marriage.”

Ian, who will be 80 next year, was working at Spooner Dryer and Engineering Company in Ilkley when he captured the image of Princess Diana on a visit to Cookridge Hospital.

He said he had forgotten about submitting the photograph and was “really chuffed” to find out it had been selected.

“The photo together with the others that I took on the same day 19.11.1985 have never been on display and are just in an album with other photos taken that year,” he said.

He said: “Princess Diana and Prince Charles were visiting Cookridge Hospital and surprisingly there weren’t that many people there. I hadn’t expected the Princess to come so close and so had put a 400mm lens on my camera, so I was lucky I managed to get her into focus. The Princess was going down the people who were there and shaking hands when I managed to get this shot.”

The Crown from the Crowd costs £25 with 100% of the profit donated to Help for Heroes. It is available from www.crownfromthecrowd.com.