NBC on royal-watch tonight with ‘Dateline,’ concert

Matt Lauer isn’t exactly in the inner circle at Buckingham Palace.

“I’m not a royal-watcher,” the “Today Show” co-host says. “I’m probably the least royal-watcher of any of my friends.”

But he might seem like one. Tonight, NBC is airing:

“A rerun of his “Dateline” interview with princes William and Harry, at 7 p.m.

“A condensed, one-hour version of the “Concert for Diana,” at 8.

The actual concert is likely to run more than six hours in London’s Wembley Stadium. It will air live beginning at 8 a.m. on VH1 (cable channel 62 in Spokane, 42 in Coeur d’Alene).

The concert is on what would have been the 46th birthday of Princess Diana, the late mother of William and Harry.

At first, it was described as a collection of her favorite performers. Elton John and Duran Duran top the bill.

The princes also chose people from their generation. “They really wanted it to be a healthy mix,” Lauer says.

At the time of Diana’s death (almost a decade ago), Kanye West was 20, Nelly Furtado was 18, Natasha Bedingfield was 15, Lily Allen was 12 and Joss Stone was 10.

All are expected to perform today, as are P. Diddy, Tom Jones, Rod Stewart, Bryan Ferry, Pharrell Williams and more.

The princes are scheduled only to introduce Furtado, Lauer says. He’s betting that the introduction will be included in NBC’s abridged version.