Dodi Al-Fayed's companion claims: "It was a planned event!"
In the summer of 1997, a romantic tale unfolded as Princess Diana accepted an invitation to spend time with Dodi Al-Fayed, the eldest son of multimillionaire Mohamed Al-Fayed. Their friendship began when Princess Diana met Mohamed Al-Fayed as a sponsor of the "Royal Windsor Horse Show".
The ZDF "Terra X History" documentary "Diana and Dodi - The Princess and the Playboy" seeks to explore the nature of their relationship. RenΓ© Delorm, Dodi's former butler, recalls finding the couple one evening on a yacht with Diana's head in Dodi's lap, a moment that suggests the depth of their bond. Delorm emphasizes that Diana fell in love with Dodi, a sentiment echoed by the documentary.
Dodi Al-Fayed was publicly known as a womanizer, a reputation supported by Denice D. Lewis, one of his ex-partners, who described him as a man who could get any woman in the world. However, Annie Cardone, another ex-partner, emphasized that he enjoyed the playboy image, yet Dodi was also described as being very shy and empathetic.
Tom Bower, author of the unauthorized biography "The Fall of Fayed", states that Mohamed Al-Fayed yearned for the reputation of the British royal family. Bower believes that Mohamed Al-Fayed deliberately orchestrated the relationship between his son Dodi and Princess Diana because he sought to gain prestige by associating with the British royal family, using the romance as a public spectacle rather than it being a genuine love affair. Peter Riva, a long-time friend of Dodi, shares similar suspicions, stating that the relationship between Diana and Dodi was a set-up and a script that "the devil could have written".
The two got along well and Mohamed Al-Fayed invited them to his estate in the South of France. Their time together was short-lived, as on August 31, 1997, Princess Diana and Dodi Al-Fayed died in a car crash in Paris. The fatal accident will mark its 28th anniversary on August 30th.
The documentary aims to provide answers about whether their relationship was true love or a well-rehearsed act. The answers may never be definitive, but the story of Diana and Dodi continues to captivate the world, a testament to the enduring mystery and allure of their brief summer romance.
