Inside Mohamed Al-Fayed’s Royal Family Obsession in Wake of Rape Allegations

The late Mohamed Al-Fayed, father of Dodi Fayed, who died alongside Princess Diana in a 1997 car crash in Paris, has been accused of multiple rapes in a new investigation — inspiring a dive into the billionaire’s fixation with the British royal family.

Al-Fayed died in August 2023 at age 94, leaving behind a self-made fortune of about $2.1 billion, which he amassed in part through ownership of the London luxury department store Harrods, Fulham Football Club and the Ritz Hotel in Paris, Forbes reported.

Al-Fayed acquired a love for all things English as a child in Egypt, according to a 1990 interview with PEOPLE. His fascination with the royal family ultimately led him to purchase Villa Windsor in Paris, the former home of Queen Elizabeth’s uncle, Prince Edward, Duke of Windsor (previously King Edward VIII), and his wife, Wallis Simpson.

”It’s like a mausoleum,” Al-Fayed told PEOPLE in 1990 of the estate, for which he spent $12 million to furnish and renovate the unofficial royal residence into a museum.

”It sometimes gives you the creeps — both of them having died here,” he said, referencing the late Duke and Duchess of Windsor, who lived an exiled life after Edward’s abdication in 1936. “But it’s still a happy place, a great fantasy which I love to live in.”

Season 5 of The Crown on Netflix recently reimagined Mohamed Al-Fayed’s journey from humble beginnings to his rise in British society and interactions with royalty. While the series explores his life story, the exact details and timing of his meeting with Princess Diana remain unclear. However, both Al-Fayed and the princess were present at a 1986 polo match, where future King Charles was playing. Al-Fayed’s son, Dodi Fayed, also participated in the game, a scene that was notably recreated in the latest season of The Crown.

In real life, the entrepreneur was also photographed with Queen Elizabeth several times at the Royal Windsor Horse Show.