| Dodi Fayed | |
|---|---|
| Born | Emad El-Din Mohamed Abdel Moneim Fayed 15 April 1955 Alexandria |
| Died | 31 August 1997 (aged 42) Pont de l'Alma, Paris, France |
| Cause of death | Road accident |
| Nationality | Egyptian |
| Occupation | Film producer |
| Known for | Death of Diana, Princess of Wales |
| Spouse | Susanne Gregard (m. 1987–1987) |
| Parents | Mohamed Al-Fayed Samira Kashoggi |
Emad El-Din Mohamed Abdel Moneim Fayed (Arabic: عماد الدين محمد عبد المنعم الفايد), known as Dodi Fayed (15 April 1955 – 31 August 1997), was an Egyptian film producer. He was best known internationally as the boyfriend of Diana, Princess of Wales, with whom he died in a car crash in the Pont de l'Alma tunnel in Paris along with driver Henri Paul on 31 August 1997.
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Born in Alexandria, Egypt, Fayed was the son of billionaire Mohamed Al-Fayed (Arabic: محمد الفايد), former owner of Harrods department store and owner of Fulham Football Club and the Hôtel Ritz Paris. His mother was Samira Kashoggi, sister of Turkish Saudi-born arms dealer billionaire Adnan Khashoggi. Fayed was a student at Collège Saint Marc before attending the Institut Le Rosey in Switzerland. He also briefly attended Sandhurst. Fayed was the executive producer of the films Chariots of Fire, Breaking Glass, F/X, F/X2, Hook, and The Scarlet Letter. He also served as the Executive Creative Consultant for the F/X television series. Fayed also worked for his father on Harrods' marketing.[1] Fayed was of Egyptian descent from his father and Spanish, Turkish and Arab descent from his mother.
In July 1997, Dodi became romantically involved with Diana, Princess of Wales. He had been engaged to American model Kelly Fisher,[2] but broke off the engagement when he began his highly publicised relationship with Diana. In the early hours of 31 August of that year, Diana and Dodi died in a car crash in the Pont de l'Alma underpass in Paris. They had stopped in Paris en route to London, after having spent nine days together on holiday in the French and Italian Riviera aboard his family yacht, the Jonikal. Neither Dodi nor Diana were wearing a seatbelt. Some reports have suggested that Henri Paul, the driver of their Mercedes-Benz limousine, may have been under the influence of alcohol and paparazzi chasing the couple may have caused the car accident. Dodi's father, Mohamed Al-Fayed claimed that the couple were executed by MI6 agents.[3] Fayed's former spokesman Michael Cole has claimed that the couple had become engaged before their deaths.[4] Their relationship and death are documented in the television film Diana: Last Days of a Princess. Dodi was originally interred in Brookwood Cemetery near Woking, Surrey, but was moved to the Fayed estate in Oxted, Surrey.
Dodi's father has erected two memorials to Dodi and Diana at Harrods. The first, unveiled on 12 April 1998, consists of photos of the two behind a pyramid-shaped display that holds a wine glass still smudged with lipstick from Diana's last dinner as well as a ring Dodi purchased the day before they died.[5] The second, unveiled in 2005 and titled "Innocent Victims", is a 3m high bronze statue of the two dancing on a beach beneath the wings of an albatross.[6] The memorials were designed by 80-year-old Bill Mitchell, a close friend of Fayed and architect for Harrods for more than 40 years.[7]
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