22 December 2025, 11:57
‘Dreams’ – Diana Newell | Classic FM
Dreams come true for Diana Newell, as the 88-year-old pianist makes her Royal Albert Hall debut.
Diana Newell, the pianist who captured hearts on Channel 4’s The Piano, has made her Royal Albert Hall debut at the age of 88, showing it’s never too late to follow your dreams.
The octogenarian performed her own composition ‘Dreams’ accompanied by the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra under conductor Mark Wigglesworth as part of Classic FM Live at 25 in October.
Arranged for strings by Rosie Danvers, the piece is dedicated to Newell’s late husband Phil.
While it was written during a difficult period, Newell has said the piece “has taken me on a journey I could only have dreamed of”.
It was performed as part of a concert also featuring Sir Bryn Terfel, Sir John Rutter, violinist Esther Abrami and Classic FM’s composer in residence Debbie Wiseman OBE.
Picture:
Matt Crossick / Classic FM
Newell had dreamed of becoming a concert pianist since childhood, taking lessons in violin, piano and organ, before going into the RAF.
Her daughter entered her into The Piano, the series that discovers hidden pianists at railway stations across Britain. She won series three and made her concert debut at the Royal Festival Hall aged 87.
After developing arthritis in her hands, Diana found she could no longer play the classical repertoire she’d spent years practising. So she started composing her own. ‘Dreams’ is the first piece Diana wrote following her husband Phil’s death.
“I used to play Chopin, Beethoven, and everything,” Diana told Classic FM. “It is difficult not to be able to play my pieces that I used to play. But, on the other hand, you’ve got to move on if you want to continue to play. And I did want to continue to play. So, I just found a way around it, around my arthritis.
“My husband Phil, loved to hear me play the Moonlight Sonata, which I do try to play now, but it means I have to adapt it. And so it doesn’t sound right,” she added. “He also loved anything that was quiet. So I think he would like ‘Dreams’. He didn’t like loud music. He just preferred it quiet and gentle.”
Newell’s story is inspirational to any late musical bloomers. “Never give up on your dreams,” she says, “I’m living mine now.”