CHARMING gentleman Dodi Al-Fayed had all the makings of a British aristocrat – or so his father wanted to believe.<\/p>\n
Desperate to be accepted into the upper echelons of British society, Harrods tycoon Mohamed Al-Fayed kept a careful watch over his son's life, masterfully positioning the family until they were rubbing shoulders with the most famous woman in the world.<\/p>\n
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In the first part of season six of The Crown, which dropped on Netflix today, Dodi's famous romance with Princess Diana is depicted as being 'engineered' by his overbearing dad.<\/p>\n
Episode one sees Mohamed (Salim Daw) pressuring the millionaire playboy (Khalid Abdalla) to throw away his impending marriage to model Kelly Fisher and to instead pursue the people's princess.<\/p>\n
Offering half his empire in return for marrying into the monarchy, he says: "This is your chance to finally make me proud of you."<\/p>\n
In real-life, the father and son's relationship was certainly complex, with one film producer close to Dodi comparing it to "when you are training a dog and you use a choke chain".<\/p>\n
"You give a little freedom, then you need to give a pull. Dodi was encouraged to fly and then not allowed to," they told Vanity Fair.<\/p>\n
Diana is believed to have first met Mohamed and Dodi alongside her husband, the then Prince Charles, at a polo match in 1986.<\/p>\n
Harrods tycoon Al-Fayed had started sponsoring charities and events that were attended by the\u00a0Royal Family, and would build up a close relationship with the princess over the following decade.<\/p>\n
Michael Cole, then director of public affairs at Harrods,\u00a0said: "Diana is so easy going with Mohamed… Mohamed is not one of those who's overwhelmed by her. They spark off each other very well."<\/p>\n
<\/picture>FATAL FEARS <\/span><\/p>\n
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<\/picture>MAKING A STATEMENT <\/span><\/p>\n
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<\/picture>ROYAL RUMBLED <\/span><\/p>\n
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<\/picture>MEGA SNUB <\/span><\/p>\n
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While Dodi was offered an empire on a silver platter, he followed his nose and became a notorious playboy.<\/p>\n
Prior to meeting Diana, he was pictured on wild nights out with A-list celebs like Brooke Shields, Julia Roberts and Winona Ryder.<\/p>\n
In 1986, the party animal ended up tying the knot with model Suzanne Gregard, but the marriage lasted just eight months.<\/p>\n
Using his family's fortune to pursue his passion in cinema, the ambitious filmmaker helped produce the critically-acclaimed Chariots of Fire, but was reportedly kicked off the set for sharing cocaine with the actors.<\/p>\n
The movie went on to win four Oscars in 1981. In\u00a0The Crown, Mohamed is seen staying up late to see if\u00a0the film\u00a0will win an award and if his name will be mentioned during the acceptance speech.<\/p>\n
Did was reportedly very proud to show his dad what he had achieved.<\/p>\n
After just a few months of dating, Diana and Dodi were both killed in the tragic Pont D\u2019Alma tunnel crash in Paris on August 31, 1997.<\/p>\n
Mohamed long insisted it was no accident, hiring his own team of investigators and appealling the findings of the French cops.<\/p>\n
Most notoriously, he suggested the crash was an 'inside job' orchestrated by the Royal Family. He went further, saying they wanted to cover up the fact that Diana was pregnant with Dodi's child, which was disproved by medical record.<\/p>\n
In the new series of The Crown, bereaved Mohamed speaks to the ghost of his dead son and begs for his forgiveness in a moment of poignant self-reflection.<\/p>\n
But Johnny Gold, who knew Dodi through his nightclub, painted a more comforting picture of their relationship.<\/p>\n
He said: "He had great pride in Mohamed, great respect.<\/p>\n
"From what Dodi said, they had a wonderful relationship."<\/p>\n
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Source: Read Full Article<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"