Donald Trump claimed to have a ‘great’ relationship with former Harrods boss Mohamed Al-Fayed and had praised the late billionaire as a ‘fabulous’ man and business owner over the years, DailyMail.com can reveal.
The Egyptian tycoon, who died in August 2023 aged 94, has been the subject of numerous allegations of sexual harassment and rape since his death – with over 400 victims coming forward in a £1billion ($1.3billion) lawsuit in the UK as of this week.
Now, DailyMail.com can reveal Al-Fayed had close ties with Republican candidate Donald Trump, 78 – enough to be invited to his wedding to third wife Melania in 2005.
Their friendship, however, went back decades earlier, with Trump even singing the fellow businessman’s praises on UK national television during an interview with the BBC‘s Terry Wogan in 1988.
Appearing alongside his first wife Ivana, Trump recalled meeting Al-Fayed and his wife Heini Wathen-Fayed, a Finnish former model who was married to Mohamed from 1985 until his death.
Donald Trump, pictured with first wife Ivana, spoke about his ‘great’ friendship with disgraced former Harrods owner Mohamed Al-Fayed in a resurfaced interview with BBC chat show host Terry Wogan in 1988
The Egyptian tycoon – who died in August 2023 aged 94 – has been the subject of hundreds of sexual harassment and assault allegations since his death
‘This is a country that I find fascinating. We were with a man yesterday, Mohamed Al-Fayed – who owns Harrods – and he is a fabulous man. And his wife is just a wonderful lady and we spent a day and we walked through Harrods,’ Trump tells Wogan.
‘I mean, as an example, what a difference between this and when we last saw it five years ago the great job he’s done with it.’
When another guest, late comedian Barry Humphries dressed as his alter-ego Dame Edna Everage, interjected with: ‘Oh wonderful, wait ’til you see his home’, Trump replies: ‘It’s beautiful’.
‘Oh you’ve been there too?’ Humphries says.
Wogan then interjects, joking: ‘I have to say Donald but you can’t be anywhere that the Dame hasn’t been.’
Trump’s comments suggest he would have visited Fayed in 1983 and 1988.
While their friendship has flown under the radar, it remained close enough throughout the decades for Al-Fayed to turn up to Trump and Melania’s wedding at in Palm Beach in January 2005.
The event was covered as a society story in the Palm Beach Daily News which reported Al-Fayed making a grand entrance and heading straight to the front of the church.
Trump remained close to Al-Fayed through the years enough to invite the mogul to his 2005 wedding to third wife Melania in Palm Beach
Al-Fayed was the father of producer Dodi Al-Fayed (right) who was romantically linked to Princess Diana when they both died in a Paris car crash in 1997
Princess Diana with Mohammed Al Fayed pictured attending a charity dinner for the Harefield Heart Unit held at Harrods, London, in February 1996
‘Mohamed Al-Fayed created a stir when he strode into The Episcopal Church of Bethesda-by-the-Sea and planted himself in the reserved-for-family front row as if, one guest groused, “he was the archbishop of Canterbury”.’
Other guests included Bill and Hillary Clinton, Tony Bennett, Shaquille O’Neill, Heidi Klum and Simon Cowell.
Trump would go on to speak fondly of Al-Fayed in subsequent interviews, including a 2003 sit-down with UK business magazine Property Week, in which he reiterated that the now disgraced magnate was ‘a friend of mine’ and a ‘great guy’.
Speaking of his potential business interests in the UK, Trump told the magazine: ‘I have great relationships with a lot of terrific people there.
‘Mohamed Al-Fayed is a friend of mine and is a great guy but a lot of people don’t know that.’
When asked about a possible ‘tie-up with Harrods’, he replies: ‘Well, I don’t know.
‘I have to be very careful. I’ve turned down at least 10 jobs over the last five years in England because I don’t want to get into a situation where it’s not the best.’
Previously, Trump had joked that he could have slept with the late Princess Diana, who was dating Al-Fayed’s son Dodi when they both died in a Paris car crash in 1997.
In a 1997 interview with Howard Stern, he was asked: ‘Why do people think it’s egotistical of you to say you could’ve gotten with Lady Di? You could’ve gotten her, right? You could’ve nailed her?’
The billionaire Egyptian businessman – who is survived by his wife Heini Wathen (pictured in 2016) – bought Harrods in 1985, six years after acquiring the Ritz in the French capital. He bought Fulham in 1997
While most of the claims against Al-Fayed are from former employees at Harrods, other victims have come forward from across the billionaire’s business empire
This week, the Justice for Harrods Survivors group said it had sent its first letter of claim to Harrods, signifying the ‘beginning of the formal legal process’, with lawyers indicating ‘it will be followed by hundreds more’
Trump responds: ‘I think I could have’, before adding that she’d have to go to the doctors with him ‘for a little check up’, referring to an STD test.
The ex-POTUS is a known germaphobe and told Stern that he always made sure women had the test before sleeping with him.
Trump’s close ties to the mogul have resurfaced as lawyers working on the case against the late Egyptian billionaire on Thursday revealed that they have been dealing with 421 inquiries concerning Al-Fayed.
In a press conference held in central London, the Justice for Harrods Survivors group said it had been contacted by many people from Harrods and the Premier League football team Fulham FC, both owned by Al-Fayed.
The group’s legal team said it had sent its first letter of claim to Harrods, signifying the ‘beginning of the formal legal process’ and indicated ‘it will be followed by hundreds more’.
Dean Armstrong KC, one of the group’s legal team, added: ‘We are delighted to announce that we have reached an agreement with a major law firm who will be handling the processing of these claims.
‘The law firm have areas of expertise in this field and, lest anyone be concerned about our ability to fight this cause to the end, backing of over £1billion.’
