Palace scandal HOW FAYED WOOED PRINCESS DI

Sensational new book The Monster of Harrods reveals how Mohamed Al-Fayed's royal obsession turned into hatred

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Fayed first asked Diana to join him on holiday on his yacht years before she actually went. In 1990, when she was still married to Charles, he suggested that she join him and his family in France, but when Diana asked her security to fly to France to check how safe it was, they replied that it seemed neither safe nor appropriate for her to go.

Meanwhile, Fayed kept up the fight to win the affection of the royal family, with no detail being too small in Fayed's royal charm offensive. Royal staff who were introduced to him at official engagements would find Harrods Gold Cards, personalised with their names, delivered to them by courier. This calculated generosity extended to the royals themselves.

“Every time Mr Fayed appeared at a royal event, there would be an audible groan among the staff. His eagerness to please was exhausting,” a former Buckingham Palace staff member said. “He’d be dismissive of most staff he came across, but when they were linked to the royal family, it was a different thing. He was practically bowing to them just because of their closeness to royalty.”

Fayed sent horse-drawn Harrods vans to Kensington Palace filled with gifts for Diana and her sons. These deliveries became so frequent that on one occasion, as the distinctive green and gold van approached, she reportedly asked the driver with weary resignation, “Is this from Mr Fayed? Oh, dear.”