Yahoo Lifestyle 
The Melbourne Cup's most famous celebrity guests
From royals to movie stars and socialites, you'll see them all trackside.
The Melbourne Cup is a huge event on the Australian social calendar, attracting big-name celebs from around the world. Some of these guests are paid to attend while others are in the country for work and score an invitation to the lavishly decked out Birdcage Enclosure, where VIPs rub shoulders.
Here's a look back at the biggest international guests to make an appearance at the race that stops the nation.
Princess Diana
Princess Diana was just 24 when she attended the Melbourne Cup in 1985 while she and Prince Charles were on their Royal Tour of Australia. Already a mum-of-two, she wore a monochrome suit from British fashion designer Bruce Oldfield teamed with a hat by Frederick Fox.
"We were all on a steep learning curve, her as a princess and we as a princess dressing company," designer Oldfield told the SMH. "We all learned quickly and not too many mistakes were made."
RELATED:
7 times Princess Mary and Princess Kate were royal style copycats
Lindsay Lohan 'urecognisable' in new photo: 'That's not her'
However, he does admit that the jacket had caused him a few issues. "It was the mid-'80s and the time of very large [shoulder] pads and it was always a problem to fix them firmly into a garment and these looked as if they had somehow slipped."
Mary and Crown Prince Frederik
Tasmanian-born Aussie Mary Donaldson decided to take her boyfriend to the 2002 Melbourne Cup. He just happened to be Crown Prince Frederik, the future King of Denmark. The couple have now been married for 19 years and have four children together.
Zara Phillips
What's surprising is that equestrian and horse-lover, Zara Phillips, daughter of Princess Anne, has only been to the Melbourne Cup once. Wearing an ink-blue Thread Social dress and a black feathered fascinator by royal milliner Philip Treacy, Zara was happy she could be a little more relaxed in her fashion choices in Australia compared to the UK.
"Ascot has a lot of rules about dress codes, so it's nice to be able to be a bit more relaxed and for women to be able to wear skirts that are a bit shorter," she told The Australian.
Lady Kitty Spencer
Another of Prince William's cousins to attend the Melbourne Cup is Princess Diana's niece, Lady Kitty Spencer.
"Lexus Melbourne Cup here we come!! Channeling my inner jockey since 1992!" she wrote in an Instagram post at the time with a throwback photo of herself on a horse as a young child.
Jerry Hall
Jerry Hall showed off her statuesque figure in a black and white suit at the 2013 Melbourne Cup. She had also attended the 2010 event with her daughter, model Georgia May Jagger.
Paris Jackson
Michael Jackson's only daughter, Paris Jackson, embraced an ethereal boho look with both her outfits for the 2017 Melbourne Cup but she really had no idea what to expect when she agreed to attend the event.
"When I was first told about this I kind of figured it was a Dodgers stadium, baseball experience where you sit in a baseball cap and jeans and you eat a hotdog," she told Vogue Australia.
Paris and Nicky Hilton
Socialite sisters Paris and Nicky Hilton had just burst onto the international stage as models and socialites and Paris was just about to launch the reality TV show The Simple Life with her childhood friend Nicole Richie.
They turned heads in peak early noughties fashion, mingling with fellow celebs and racegoers in the newly set up Birdcage.
Gigi Hadid
US model Gigi Hadid attended the Melbourne Cup in 2014 but it wasn't what she expected after champion horse Admire Rakti collapsed and died after the race.
"Absolutely heartbroken to hear of the passing of this beautiful horse. Honored to be one of the last he was photographed with, a personality I will never forget,” she tweeted at the time.
Sarah Jessica Parker
Sex And The City star Sarah Jessica Parker lost her plus one at the 2011 Melbourne Cup after her co-star in the show Kristin Davis (who plays Charlotte York-Goldenblatt) had to pull out when the adoption of her daughter Gemma Rose came through.
Luckily, Sarah Jessica found cricketer Shane Warne and his then-girlfriend, model and actress Elizabeth Hurley, were the perfect race-watching buddies.
Snoop Dogg
American rapper Snoop Dogg was in Australia for The West Coast Originals Tour when he decided to check out our favourite race day.
And he certainly got everyone talking that day. He didn't seem that interested in the horses at all.
"All he wanted was to rap, and he told everyone dancing in there with a bend in their elbow to use straight arms," Rebecca Judd revealed on KIIS radio in 2020. "He ordered fried chicken and orange juice — iconic!" she added.
Eva Longoria
Eva Longoria was a huge star in 2005, as one of the main characters in US drama Desperate Housewives. While in Australia at the Melbourne Cup she got chatting to American soap royalty Ronn Moss who was playing Ridge Forrester in Bold and the Beautiful at the time.
Lindsay Lohan
Mean Girls actress Lindsay Lohan took her sister Ali to the 2019 Melbourne Cup. Lindsay wore a pretty blush feathered dress and spoke of her love for the city while at the cup.
"I’m excited to do it [film The Masked Singer] in Melbourne, it’s a different energy," she told Studio 10's Angela Bishop on the day.
"It’s like London and New York had a baby and that’s Melbourne," she added.
You can watch the Melbourne Cup on Tuesday 7 November at 3 pm on Channel 10
Never miss a thing. Sign up to Yahoo Lifestyle’s daily newsletter.
Or if you have a story idea, email us at lifestyle.tips@yahooinc.com.
