Diana's Elvis dress to go on show

The dress was donated by US souvenir maker Franklin Mint

A pearl-encrusted dress worn by Princess Diana is to go on display at London's Victoria and Albert Museum.

The gown, known as the "Elvis dress" due to its rich adornment and high collar, was donated by a US firm which sold Diana dolls wearing the dress.

Franklin Mint's subsequent costly legal battle with the Diana Memorial Fund, led the charity to freeze its donations in 2003.

The firm's owners acquired the dress in 1997 at a fundraising auction.

The late princess commissioned the floor-length white, sequinned gown for an unofficial visit to Hong Kong in November 1989.

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Franklin Mint donated the dress, created by British designer Catherine Walker, to the museum in 2005 and it goes on display on Friday.

It follows a protracted court battle between the firm and the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund.

The fund had tried unsuccessfully to prevent Mint from selling Diana memorabilia and then faced a lawsuit by the US firm, which claimed £14m ($25m) in damages in 2002.

The charity was left with a £4m legal bill and faced criticism it had wasted millions of pounds of the charity's money

Both parties eventually reached an out of court settlement in November 2004, with the fund announcing it would resume awarding grants to causes championed by Diana.