Princess Diana's funeral hymn to be first sung at royal wedding

Prince William and Kate Middleton have decided to pay a moving tribute to the prince's late mother Princess Diana by including a hymn which was sung at her funeral.

The couple has chosen the final hymn at her funeral to be the first one to be sung at their wedding ceremony on Friday.

The couple have included "Guide me, O thou great redeemer" as a tribute to the Prince's mom, late Princess of Wales. The hymn was sung at her funeral in 1997.

It was also played at a memorial service to mark the 10th anniversary of her death.

A St James' Palace spokesman said Prince Charles was instrumental in helping the couple choose the music for their service.

"Catherine is very familiar with classical music. She had a lot of input from the Prince of Wales. They spent a lot of time listening to the music together on iPods," the Daily Mail quoted the spokesman as saying.

"The theme of the whole wedding is Britishness, accentuating traditional forms and crafts.

"Catherine was very keen to include Greensleeves because it's such a famous piece of English music. A lot of these pieces have been chosen for their theatre.

"They are stunning pieces of music that fill the Abbey and give a sense of grandeur to the occasion," the spokesperson added.

The Prince and his fiancee also chose to include 'Farewell to Stromness' by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies in their service because it featured in the Prince and the Duchess's wedding blessing.