The Irish-American personal designer of Princess Diana, Paul Costelloe, has died at the age of 80.

His family announced the sad news on Saturday, November 22, stating: “With deep sadness we announce the death of Paul Costelloe after a short illness.”

Paul Costelloe passed away in London, where he lived with his wife and their seven children.

Princess Diana’s personal fashion designer Paul Costelloe dead at 80 https://t.co/j8UCfShXAo pic.twitter.com/2GINHQdbVD

— New York Post (@nypost) November 23, 2025

Who was Paul Costelloe

The luxury womenswear designer was one of Ireland’s most prominent stylists and a regular attendee at London Fashion Week since its inception in 1984. Born in 1945 in Dublin, Costelloe studied at the Grafton Academy of Fashion Design and trained as a design assistant at French luxury houses in Paris before joining the Marks and Spencer brand in Milan.

He founded his own company, Paul Costelloe Collections, in 1979. He was later appointed personal stylist to Princess Diana in 1983 and remained in that role until her death in 1997.

As he had told Ireland’s public broadcaster, he felt he had “made it” when he was asked to become her designer. “She was very human, she didn’t behave like a princess. She made very good tea and some scones,” he noted to RTE about his most famous client.

Legacy

His collections combined old-school styles with new, innovative touches, often featuring vibrant colours, patterns and floral designs. He consistently emphasised his Irish heritage, using traditional fabrics, with Irish linen and tweed frequently forming key elements of his creations.

Over the past 20 years, he collaborated with Dunnes Stores on a range of fashion and homeware collections. Costelloe presented his final Spring–Summer collection inspired by the 1960s, titled “We Still Down Rodeo Drive,” at London Fashion Week last September.

“My ambition is to eventually step away from fashion,” he told Vogue in 2024. “To rent an old car and drive to France and paint,” he added, according to the French news agency AFP.

Photo: Getty Images / Ideal Image