Diana and Dodi (and Tony Blair)

[Denville]

oh come? She didn't balme him for leaving her for a richer more famous woman? If she didn't blame him why was her next move to go to a lawyer and sue?
I don't really know what happened.. I had thougth that Dodi tried to keep her sweet for a bit, she wised up that he was seeing Diana and gave him the push but then went ot a lawyer to see what she could get out of the relationship and sold her story to a newspaper.
I do wonder if Dodi would have married her, if Di hadn't come into the picture.. I honestly don't think that he was that enthuasiasitc...

 

[Osipi]

As Old Bill has said, "Heaven has no rage like love to hatred turned/Nor hell a fury like a woman scorned." If what has been recounted is true and Kelly Fisher was just bluntly dropped as portrayed by Ms. Fisher in the Diana inquest, and she was "told off" by Daddy Dearest, I wouldn't blame her one bit for going to a lawyer with a breach of promise lawsuit.

Its also been reported that when Dodi was summoned to spend time with Diana at first, Kelly was not far away on a different yacht in the same area.

I think she owes Diana a huge "thank you" for showing her exactly what kind of a man Dodi Al-Fayed was. Probably saved her a boat load of agony and disappointment in the future if she had actually married the man. If Daddy had ordered Dodi to marry Diana, he would most likely have married her and who knows what kind of heartbreak that relationship would have had in a second marriage. I seriously don't think Diana though would ever consider Dodi as marriage material. A fun time, yes. A marriage, no.

 

[Denville]

I cant help feeling that someone who turns to a top lawyer to sue for breach of promise isn't primarily concerned wthh being upset. maybe she was.. But I think she must have been aware that Dodi was lukewarm on the idea of them getting married. I really do find ti hard to believe that they had plans to marry on 9th August and yet they weren't deep in wedding preparations... The fact that they weren't seems ot indicate to me that Dodi wasn't that serious about it. Perhaps if MAF had not come along pushing him to go and pay court to Diana, he and Kelly would have married..

 

[Moonmaiden23]

I have never thought Dodi was a bad man. He grew up a very lonely little boy after Mohammed took him away from his mother after he divorced her and then emotionally neglected him(something he and Diana had in common btw). His mother later died.

Dodi was an only child until his father remarried, and he soothed his loneliness by turning to animals as his true friends..after his death there were reports in the media of him often having his limo driver stop to pick up sick and abandoned stray dogs. Dodi would adopt them and nurse them back health. He was also a needy, generous people pleaser.

I see him as weak, damaged, spoiled and a bit lost under Mohammed's purse strings holding thumb...but definitely not cruel.

 

[Mirabel]

Its also been reported that when Dodi was summoned to spend time with Diana at first, Kelly was not far away on a different yacht in the same area.

I think she owes Diana a huge "thank you" for showing her exactly what kind of a man Dodi Al-Fayed was. Probably saved her a boat load of agony and disappointment in the future if she had actually married the man. If Daddy had ordered Dodi to marry Diana, he would most likely have married her and who knows what kind of heartbreak that relationship would have had in a second marriage. I seriously don't think Diana though would ever consider Dodi as marriage material. A fun time, yes. A marriage, no.

Kelly probably knew what kind of man he was; he did have a rather sleazy reputation.

But I agree that Diana never seriously considered marrying him, and I think she was planning a return to England and an end to her relationship with Dodi.

 

[Pranter]

Dodi was a summer fling...that would of ended after summer. She really wanted Hasnat to be jealous...but I don't think that relationship would of lasted either. He did not want to be part of all the hassle of the media and her life.


LaRae

 

[Denville]

I have never thought Dodi was a bad man. He grew up a very lonely little boy after Mohammed took him away from his mother after he divorced her and then emotionally neglected him(something he and Diana had in common btw). His mother later died.

Dodi was an only child until his father remarried, and he soothed his loneliness by turning to animals as his true friends..after his death there were reports in the media of him often having his limo driver stop to pick up sick and abandoned stray dogs. Dodi would adopt them and nurse them back health. He was also a needy, generous people pleaser.

I see him as weak, damaged, spoiled and a bit lost under Mohammed's purse strings holding thumb...but definitely not cruel.

You don't think it was a bit cruel to ditch Kelly, (esp if she genuinely cared for him) just like that, refuse to take her phone calls and be seen courting Diana very publicly? I don't think he was that emtotinally involved with Kelly but she was his girlfriend and he just left her with no explanation, to court and possibly marry another woman.

 

[Elan]

they probably went to Paris..... but I honestly cant remember if I have heard this story. I can't see what the problem is, anyway. Dodi was showing off thtat he or his dad had enough money to fly her abroad for a dinner date...

Guessing that it's possible they could have flown back that same evening. Although it seems more likely after a flight across the channel and a nice dinner that they would not want to rush back, and therefore we don't know whether they stayed in Paris for the night at his residence (apartment) ?

 

[Denville]

Guessing that it's possible they could have flown back that same evening. Although it seems more likely after a flight across the channel and a nice dinner that they would not want to rush back, and therefore we don't know whether they stayed in Paris for the night at his residence (apartment) ?

No we don't know but it hardly matters does it? we don't even know for sure - I certainly can't remember - if ther was such a dinner date. It seems more like the sort of thing one sees on a TV show about rich people..
"Oh we're gong to dinner... its a surprise" and the next scene is you see a plane flying.

I think they were lovers, but not sure...

 

[Denville]

Kelly probably knew what kind of man he was; he did have a rather sleazy reputation.

But I agree that Diana never seriously considered marrying him, and I think she was planning a return to England and an end to her relationship with Dodi.

I think she may have considered it. He was very rich, and I think she did have a genuine feeling for him at first.. and marriage to him would give her great wealth, many homes and I think she liked the Fayed family, MAF's younger children. But I feel that within a short time she must have seen Dodi's faults very clearly, and realised that he was just for short term fun, not a serious love affair. I think within a few holidays she could see how aimless he was, how his life was disorganised and he upset his bodyguards with his changing plans and silly ideas.. He made a fuss about little things, and that probably seemed silly to her.
He was generous, but I think she soon realised that he was bad with money and his money was his father's.. so he wasn't really being generous, he was buying her things on his father's nickel and she could soon see, I'd say, that he depended on his father in all sorts of ways, financialy of course and in terms of being told what to do.. and Im sure that was off putting...
Im sure she didn't want to be married to someone who would be ordered around by his father and need his father ot settle his bills half the time..

So she soon was in the mode of thinking.. "This is a nice bit of holiday fun, but I don't want to go on with the relationship when the summer's over.. I'll just enjoy it for now..."

I don't think he had proposed, but she did say to friends that if he did give her a ring it would go on her right hand..

 

[QueenEmpath]

Don't know if Kelly's feelings for Dodi was genuine or not but as much we heard about him it's clear that even if he would've married Kelly, he would get bored of her shortly and divorced her like his wife Suzanne Gregard

 

[Denville]

Did he divorce his wife? I think he would have strung along with Kelly, married her if she pressured him.. I don't get the feeling that he was that strongly comititted to being engaged to her..
Having said that, I do feel that she wasn't exactly true blue in love with him. I imagine she was fond of him, but how deep was it? He seems to have been a pleasant companion and rich enough to treat his lady friends well, in a material sense and he also had no job so he could spend time wth them.. but there wasn't much to him. Would Kelly have been with him if he wasn't the son of a very rich man. I ca't help feeling that she was keen to marry him but not deeply in love.. and that he was fond of her but wasn't that keen to marry her and was just going along with some vague "planning for marriage" and finding a place to live... If the Diana thing hadn't come up, and Kelly had gone on making plans and pushng Dodi, he problaby would have married her.. but I don't think that he was seriously intedning to get married on 9th August.. and really really wanted to..

 

[Denville]

One thing Diana did find in Dodi though was something I think she craved during her marriage to Charles and that is undivided attention from the guy she was with. Perhaps it was a lesson to Diana that being put on a pedestal and adored 24/7 isn't what its cracked up to be. It quickly wore thin.

I dt Highgrove.

I don't think it bothered her that Dodi was giving her a lot of attention. I think she was fine with that and it did please her and sooth her ego.
It was nice to have him showing her a good time.. and being there..

However, I think that she could see quickly that Dodi was beign ordered around by his father, that he didn't have any great independence, because he wasn't able to live on his income.. and I think that would not have boded well for a marriage. And that he was nice but really no brains at all.. and he was messy and disorganised.. his staff refered to "Dodi time" because he was so disorganised about getting things doen and making plans.. I would say tht all this irritated her, and she could see that while he was nice and she had enjoyed his company for a short time, he wasn't going to be husband material. I think she hoped that a new partner would be her companion in doing charity work etc and Dodi didn't seem into that.. He would have been free to accompany her on trips but would he have been interested in say her landmines work?

 

[Elan]

However, I think that she could see quickly that Dodi was beign ordered around by his father, that he didn't have any great independence, because he wasn't able to live on his income.. and I think that would not have boded well for a marriage. And that he was nice but really no brains at all.. and he was messy and disorganised.. his staff refered to "Dodi time" because he was so disorganised about getting things doen and making plans.. I would say tht all this irritated her, and she could see that while he was nice and she had enjoyed his company for a short time, he wasn't going to be husband material. I think she hoped that a new partner would be her companion in doing charity work etc and Dodi didn't seem into that.. He would have been free to accompany her on trips but would he have been interested in say her landmines work?

It seems certain Al Fayed would have implemented some sort of Ceo status upon him had they become more of a couple. What he needed was a position within the family to insure financial independence of his own. If the family net worth was approx a billion give or take, then a lot of options on the table. Btw, Dodi did generate a name for himself when he produced Chariots of Fire.

If any addiction had surfaced, Diana's resources and experience may have found a way to help in overcoming these. If he conquered them it might have cemented their relationship further...assuming he stayed on the wagon.

 

[Denville]

I doubt if Fayed had any expectations taht Dodi would be any use in the business world.. esp since he could not live within his income but left unpaid bills everywhere..Fayed summoned him to court Diana because he had given up hoping for him to be any kind of success at work... He clearly felt that Dodi might just be able to woo a divorced and lonely princess, and marry her.

Dodi had no interest in seriously getting involved in the movie business.. he was kicked off the set of Chariots for sharing drugs.. so I don't quite see how he "made his name" there.. He was onyly on the credits because of his fathers putting money in the movie...

 

[Elan]

I doubt if Fayed had any expectations taht Dodi would be any use in the business world.. and he could not live within his income but left unpaid bills everywhere..Fayed summoned him to court Diana because he had given up hooping for him to be any kind of success at work... He clearly felt that Dodi might just be abele to woo a divorced and lonely princess, and marry her.

As enamoured with Diana as Al Fayed was over the years, it's puzzling that he would present his son as a proper suitor to the most eligible woman in the world. Especially if he regarded him as thoughtless, adrift, profligate.. it raises questions on what the point was in setting up the whole exercise. Unless citizenship was central to it.

 

[Osipi]

Daddy's big aim was to get his foot in the door of the upper echelons of British society. With Daddy's money, Dodi would make a pretty rich, not too bad looking and attentive lap dog for Diana. Dodi marries Diana and with Daddy pulling the purse strings, Daddy could talk Dodi into talking Diana into whatever floated his boat. It would be the golden feather in his cap to have Diana as a daughter-in-law and be step grandfather to the future king of the UK.

I really don't know that much about Mohamed Al-Fayed but I did read a blip that when Al-Fayed divorced Dodi's mother, *he* took custody of Dodi. It may be possible that overall, Daddy doesn't really have that high of an opinion of women and if he could control his son, he most certainly felt he would be able to control his son's wife. After all... money talks.

This is just a whole lot of supposition as we'll never really know.

 

[Denville]

well yes of course his idea was to at least get a foot in the door of British high society which had never really accepted him.
Im sure he hoped Dodi would be a worthy son and heir but he could see long before Di came along that Dodi was not very bright, and lacked any drive or ambition. he had tired to make an English Gentleman out of him and Dodi had dropped out of Sandhusrst. He idled around, had a phase of using drugs, left unpaid bills, did noting but escort pretty women around.. and MAF was probably despairing of his making anything of the boy...
but with Diana divorced, alone, looking for a companion, and maybe a husband who would be rich enough to rival the BRF, he thought that he could wheel Dodi out, and get him to propose.. and even if the marriage didn't last, he would have some kind of connextion to the BRF and the Spencer family...
I don't think that Di would have married Dodi, but MAF obviously thought there was a chance..

As enamored with Diana as Al Fayed was over the years, it's puzzling that he would present his son as a proper suitor to the most eligible woman in the world. Especially if he regarded him as thoughtless, adrift, profligate.. it raises questions on what the point was in setting up the whole exercise. Unless citizenship was central to it.

He wasn't enamoured with Diana. He was trying to build up a friendship iwht her because of who she was.. and he had a line to her because her father and Raine Spencer had both been somewhat friendly with him.
he didn't care about what sort of suitor Dodi was.. provided he could persuade his son to show up, put on his best behavour, ditch his current girlfirned and pay court to Diana. And he could get Dodi to do that because he supported him financially since Dodi was unable to live within his income or make any money himself.
So when he issued orders Dodi basically obeyed..

 

[maria-olivia]

anf if Diana wanted to made his Pakistan Doctor Jalous ?

 

[Denville]

I don't know if she did.. sicne she broke off with him to start a relationship with Dodi. Perhaps she had given up hope that he would taek their relationship further, and go public, or marry her...so she moved onto an affair with Dodi...

 

[Pranter]

I've understood that Hasnat broke off with her or they had a mutual 'break' ...and she saw the opportunity with Dodi to try and make him jealous.


LaRae

 

[Denville]

I've understood that Hasnat broke off with her or they had a mutual 'break' ...and she saw the opportunity with Dodi to try and make him jealous.


LaRae

as far as I know, he said that she ended their affair.. and that he wasn't sure if she had moved into a relationship with someone else.. Dodi was little knownw at the time.. and it was only when Diana had herself photographed wit him on the yacht that her romance was known and it was known to be Al Fayeds son. (the KISS photos).
My understanding was that Khan thought there was someone else but didn't know who until he saw the pix in the press..
I think that she had perhaps begun to give up hope that he would go any further than a secret romance with her and although they loved each other, she was frustrated and sought another admirer.. and Dodi was beign wheeled out by MAF....
It think she did want to "show" Khan that she had someone else, and that she now had an admirer who was happy to be seen with her.. and she also wanted to "show" the RF that she had a very rich admirer....

 

[Elan]

and if Diana wanted to made his Pakistan Doctor Jalous ?

She certainly went about it the right way, if that was the intent. There are some men of which Hasnat appeared to be, who aren't possessive in their relationships with women. If heavily involved with other parts of their life, they don't invest all of themselves in their partner. He must have felt a few pangs, but as this was bran new at the time..it simply was left for him to wonder how, or when, the relationship materialized.

He did have a clear premonition, that trouble might find her.

 

[Denville]

She certainly went about it the right way, if that was the intent. There are some men of which Hasnat appeared to be, who aren't possessive in their relationships with women. If heavily involved with other parts of their life, they don't invest all of themselves in their partner. He must have felt a few pangs, but as this was bran new at the time..it simply was left for him to wonder how, or when, the relationship materialized.

He did have a clear premonition, that trouble might find her.

I think he was hurt, but he was ambivalent about their relationship, because he didn't want the publicity that would result in a life as Dianas' open partner.. and he wanted to please his parents by marrying into their culture and religion. He probably also thought that Diana could nt adjust to middle class doctors' wife, after being a Princess.
But he must have been hurt that she had taken up wih someone else like Dodi...

 

[Elan]

I think he was hurt, but he was ambivalent about their relationship, because he didn't want the publicity that would result in a life as Dianas' open partner.. and he wanted to please his parents by marrying into their culture and religion. He probably also thought that Diana could nt adjust to middle class doctors' wife, after being a Princess.
But he must have been hurt that she had taken up wih someone else like Dodi...

Whatever his feelings were at the time, a good deal less is said about Diana's emotional letdown with him, in terms of a falling out over commitment and marriage. The idea that their relationship would remain under wraps indefinitely must have upset her, and not a little.. We presume that the summer fling was all about fun and sun, but imo her outlook and mindset were at a crossroads and a low point.

 

[Denville]

We.. We presume that the summer fling was all about fun and sun, but imo her outlook and mindset were at a crossroads and a low point.

I think she was fairly happy. SHe was probably coming to terms with the fact that HK wasn't going to marry her.. and she had a rich and pleasant boyfriend, showing her a good time for a few weeks. I think she would problaby have been depressed when the summer ended, but apart from what looks like a bit of irritation with Dodi, she seemed happy...

 

[Osipi]

By the time that summer ended, I think Diana would have been a totally single, divorced woman on her own again and both Dr. Khan and Dodi would eventually fade into the annals of history for her. Neither of them, in my estimation, would have gone the distance in a happy marriage to Diana.

With Khan, she basically ran into the same thing that caused problems between her and Charles. Their individual careers and aspirations. Not being able to manipulate Khan into a career change and fly off to South Africa, she probably realized that where he was with his profession is where he would stay and there was no way she'd coax him into a life with her with all the publicity involved. Khan had worked too hard to get where he was and wasn't about to hand over control of his career and profession in order to marry Diana. I don't think Diana would have been content either with just being a cardiac surgeon's wife staying in the background.

With Dodi, she found what she wanted in Charles and Khan. Someone to dote on her, spend all his time with her and basically act like the hero out of a Cartland romance novel. She probably also realized that this man was no romance novel hero but was a man without direction or substance. A daddy's puppet and sycophant. I don't think that Dodi was strong or mature enough to really be a supportive husband and partner for Diana either.

We'll never know how things would have went but I really don't see Diana ending up in a long term relationship/marriage with either Dr. Khan or Dodi Al-Fayed.

 

[Elan]

I think she was fairly happy. SHe was probably coming to terms with the fact that HK wasn't going to marry her.. and she had a rich and pleasant boyfriend, showing her a good time for a few weeks. I think she would problaby have been depressed when the summer ended, but apart from what looks like a bit of irritation with Dodi, she seemed happy...

One reason she may have been was her fondness for a holiday, and perhaps returning home rejuvenated. In light of the variety of places she had travelled, it's unclear how wonderful the trip was. According to Burrell, as soon as he saw photos of them taken at the dock with sneakers in hand and Dodi right behind, felt immediately she was 'not happy'. ..A vague business like expression is displayed, in contrast to those where she radiated fun, humour, happiness.

When she decided to accept the yacht invitation, she must have anticipated a nice excursion of surf and sand, rather than let despair ruin a trip. From that standpoint I agree she was happy.

 

[Denville]

I hardly think she was very unhappy, but I think that the signs are there that while at first she was happy with Dodi, she was getting a bit stressed. SHe was pleased at first, I think. He seemed a nice fellow, he was payig her a lot of attention and it was nice ot have a boyfriend she didn't have to hide... but could be seen openly with. But I think it didn't last that long. THey were together only a month or so.. and even then, hints emerged that she got a bit irritated by Dodi's making a fuss about little annoyances, like midges.. and since she liked a comfortablley but not rigidly planned life, Dodi messing around, changing arrangements and annoying the poor bodyguards, must have begun to seem off putting. And I think she could see that he was dominated by his father. So within a short time, the gloss was off the affair....

 

[Blog Real]

Where did Diana and Dodi meet?