Mohamed Al Fayed's family has paid tribute to the "beloved" Egyptian billionaire and former Harrods owner after his death at the age of 94.
In a statement released by Fulham FC, his family said: "Mrs Mohamed Al Fayed, her children and grandchildren wish to confirm that her beloved husband, their father and their grandfather, Mohamed, has passed away peacefully of old age on Wednesday August 30, 2023.
"He enjoyed a long and fulfilled retirement surrounded by his loved ones. The family have asked for their privacy to be respected at this time."
In the years after the death of his son Dodi Fayed, an Egyptian film producer, alongside Diana, Princess of Wales in a car crash in Paris in 1997, Mr Al Fayed repeatedly claimed they were murdered in a plot by the British establishment.
The billionaire's relationship with the royal family was recently depicted in season five of The Crown, where Mr Al Fayed, played by Salim Daw, was seen getting to know Diana. Mr Al Fayed had taken control of Harrods in 1985 and he had also purchased the Ritz hotel in Paris in 1979; and was known for being the owner of Fulham FC between 1997 and 2013.
The tycoon was the owner and chairman of Fulham between 1997 and 2013 when he sold it to current owner Shahid Khan. The football club said it was "incredibly saddened" by his death.
In a tweet, the west London club said: "Everyone at Fulham was incredibly saddened to learn of the death of our former owner and chairman, Mohamed Al Fayed. We owe Mohamed a debt of gratitude for what he did for our club, and our thoughts now are with his family and friends at this sombre time."
And in a tribute on the club's website, his successor Mr Khan said: "On behalf of everyone at Fulham Football Club, I send my sincere condolences to the family and friends of Mohamed Al Fayed upon the news of his passing at age 94.
"The story of Fulham cannot be told without a chapter on the positive impact of Mr Al Fayed as chairman. His legacy will be remembered for our promotion to the Premier League, a Europa League Final, and moments of magic by players and teams alike.
"I always enjoyed my time with Mr Al Fayed, who was wise, colourful and committed to Fulham, and I am forever grateful for his trust in me to succeed him as chairman in 2013. I join our supporters around the world in celebrating the memory of Mohamed Al Fayed, whose legacy will always be at the heart of our tradition at Fulham Football Club."
TV star and journalist Piers Morgan also paid tribute to Mr Fayed. Taking to X, formerly known as Twitter, he wrote: "RIP Mohamed Al-Fayed, 94. An extraordinary tour de force of a man who never got over the death of his beloved son Dodi in the crash that also killed Diana. Mohamed wasn’t everyone’s cup of tea and he was a flawed, complex character, but I liked him."
Self-made billionaire was son of a school inspector
Mohamed Al Fayed was born in the Egyptian city of Alexandria on the Mediterranean, the son of a school inspector. He came to London in the 1960s and set about building a business empire. Once there, the flamboyant and extrovert character was rarely out of the newspapers.
In the 1980s, he hit the headlines as he battled for control of the House of Fraser group, including its flagship store Harrods, with rival tycoon "Tiny" Rowland. Al Fayed and his brother bought a 30% stake in House Of Fraser from Mr Rowland in 1984, and took control of Harrods for £615 million the following year.
Mr Rowland's London and Rhodesian Mining Company (Lonrho) had attempted to buy Harrods but was beaten to it by the Egyptian family. Mr Rowland later accused Al Fayed of breaking into his safety deposit box at the department store.
The Egyptian was arrested in March 1998 along with Harrods security director John Macnamara and four other store staff, but was never charged. Al Fayed later expanded his business interests to include the Paris Ritz and Fulham Football Club.
Massive wealth and business deals
In the past few decades, Mr Al Fayed sold off several of his high-profile businesses. Back in 2010, he sold Harrods to Qatar for a staggering $2.4billion. While he said he would never part ways with his beloved department store, it was a row over dividends and pension funds which finally showed him it was time to say goodbye.
Speaking to the Evening Standard at the time, he said: "Of course it makes me sad ... you can go ask everyone, people don't want me to go. But first of all I can't take this. I am 77 years old, right. I have children, I have grandchildren, you know ... I have done it. And time for me now to rest. And enjoy."
Three years later, in 2013, he also said goodbye to Fulham Football Club, which he sold to billionaire Shahid Khan for $300m. However he remained the proud owner of the famous Ritz Paris Hotel, regarded by many as the most beautiful in the world. In 2016 it underwent a massive refurbishment.
Earlier this year, his wealth was estimated at $2billion (roughly £1.58million), ranking at number 1,493 globally. And in May last year, Forbes listed his wealth at $1.9billion - which is about £1.6billion.
Bond with Princess Diana
While it's unknown where they first met, Princess Diana and Al Fayed's circles would have crossed regularly as he sponsored many of the charities she was involved with. Their unlikely friendship features heavily in season five of The Crown, showing Mr Al Fayed, played by Salim Daw, growing closer to the royals.
In the summer of 1997, the year after Charles and Diana were finally able to officially divorce following their five year separation, Al Fayed invited Diana and her two sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, to join his family on his yacht in the south of France.
The 208ft superyacht was the perfect setting for family time, with photos from the time showing the loving mum playing with her sons on the deck . The boat, which has now changed hands, has nine staterooms and can hold 18 people as well as a crew of 26. Dripping in luxury, it boasted a jacuzzi, office, formal dining room and a swim platform.
And it was during this trip that Diana grew close to Al Fayed's oldest son, 42-year-old film producer Dodi. Pictures of the couple cuddling and kissing on the top deck went around the world, while Diana was photographed sunbathing, jumping into a speedboat and sitting on the stern in a contemplative mood.
They were among the last pictures of the Princess, who told her friend Rosa Monckton in a phone call from the yacht that her time there was "bliss”.
Fallout with the royals
Al Fayed spent a decade after the lovers' 1997 deaths in Paris's Alma tunnel repeatedly claiming that they were murdered in a plot by the security services and the Duke of Edinburgh. But he was forced to reluctantly concede defeat after a high-profile six-month inquest in 2007 and 2008.
The jury returned unlawful killing verdicts on both Diana and Dodi, but pinned the blame on the drink-driving of their chauffeur Henri Paul, who also died in the crash. Paul was employed by the Paris Ritz, from where their journey had started on August 31, a hotel owned by Mr Al Fayed.
At the end of the inquest, coroner Lord Justice Scott Baker openly voiced suggestions of "closing ranks" at the hotel over the question of whether they knew Paul was drinking on the night of the smash.
The jury had heard allegations, strenuously denied, that key witnesses were pressurised to back Mr Al Fayed's theories and that there was a "conspiracy to pervert the truth" within the Fayed organisation. Al Fayed later announced he would accept the verdict of the inquest jury, albeit "with reservations".
Grieving son's death
Speaking on the 20th anniversary of the crash, a friend told The Sun that Dodi's apartment remains the same as it did at the time of his death.
They told the newspaper: "He often spends hours on end sitting with Dodi. After 20 years he still misses him terribly. And when he is in London he will take time out to visit Dodi’s apartment. Not one thing inside has changed since Dodi died. He will not allow anyone to move anything.
"The apartment is cleaned but it is still exactly the same as when Dodi and Diana used to spend time there.