What do you think?
Rate this book
Fayed: The Unauthorized Biography
Tom Bower tells the story of one of the most controversial figures of the 1990 Mohamed Al Fayed, whose tormented and bizarre journey is a saga reminiscent of an epic Hollywood thriller.
- GenresBiography
Hardcover
First published March 1, 1999
4 people are currently reading
105 people want to read
About the author
Tom Bower
57 books178 followersFor the author of works on child development, see T.G.R. Bower
Tom Bower (born 28 September 1946) is a British writer, noted for his investigative journalism and for his unauthorized biographies.
A former Panorama reporter, his books include unauthorised biographies of Tiny Rowland, Robert Maxwell, Mohamed Al-Fayed, Geoffrey Robinson, Gordon Brown and Richard Branson.
He won the 2003 William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award for Broken Dreams, an investigation into corruption in English football. His joint biography of Conrad Black and Barbara Amiel Conrad and Lady Black: Dancing on the Edge was published in November 2006, and an unsuccessful libel case over a passing mention of Daily Express proprietor Richard Desmond in the book was heard in July 2009.
An unauthorised biography by Bower of Richard Desmond, provisionally entitled Rough Trader, awaits publication. Bowers's biography of Simon Cowell, written with Cowell's co-operation, was published on 20 April, 2012.
Bower is married to Veronica Wadley, former editor of the London Evening Standard, and has four children.
Tom Bower (born 28 September 1946) is a British writer, noted for his investigative journalism and for his unauthorized biographies.
A former Panorama reporter, his books include unauthorised biographies of Tiny Rowland, Robert Maxwell, Mohamed Al-Fayed, Geoffrey Robinson, Gordon Brown and Richard Branson.
He won the 2003 William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award for Broken Dreams, an investigation into corruption in English football. His joint biography of Conrad Black and Barbara Amiel Conrad and Lady Black: Dancing on the Edge was published in November 2006, and an unsuccessful libel case over a passing mention of Daily Express proprietor Richard Desmond in the book was heard in July 2009.
An unauthorised biography by Bower of Richard Desmond, provisionally entitled Rough Trader, awaits publication. Bowers's biography of Simon Cowell, written with Cowell's co-operation, was published on 20 April, 2012.
Bower is married to Veronica Wadley, former editor of the London Evening Standard, and has four children.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 26, 2022
A very scary account of an empire of terror served by both millions amd minions. A man that contributed more than anyone to the most famous fatal accident of 1997, and benefited the most from the death of the Princess.
April 10, 2015
After reading ‘the bodyguard’s story’ of the only survivor of the horrendous crash in Paris that killed three (including Princess Diana) and seriously injured a fourth, I was very curious about the man that seemed to have instigated a certain romance and lost his oldest son in the process. After reading this book, I wondered how different an actually authorised version of this biography would have read – I doubt very much that it would have contained as much information as this one does or at least would have sounded a lot different. Personally, I much prefer the version as is.
Fayed is basically a man who has risen from virtual poverty to owning Harrods – for those who have never heard of this store or even visited London, England, it is THE place to be seen in and to visit! Essentially, this man has built himself an empire, made millions of money … but, somehow, he still feels insecure when everybody else would have been mighty proud of what they had achieved. This is the story told with an array of research having been done by author Tom Bower, who has written a number of similar stories – about specific people, even including revelations of the Nazis – and his experience shows.
Naturally, the accident had to be included – this may also have been the ‘trigger’ to publish this life story which was printed the year after the event – showing an openly grieving father mourning his son. However, there is a lot more to this tale than meets the eye and to that I can add my voice as I lived in London myself at the time. Murder, mayhem and conspiracy theories galore, which, it now appears, may well have been founded on previous experiences and traumas Mohamed (Al) Fayed went through in his life.
A fascinating biography of an interesting man on so many levels, from his birth in Egypt to becoming the owner of worldly Harrods in London and, as is often the case in matters such as these, it was not always a pleasant journey for the man himself or the people around him.
Fayed is basically a man who has risen from virtual poverty to owning Harrods – for those who have never heard of this store or even visited London, England, it is THE place to be seen in and to visit! Essentially, this man has built himself an empire, made millions of money … but, somehow, he still feels insecure when everybody else would have been mighty proud of what they had achieved. This is the story told with an array of research having been done by author Tom Bower, who has written a number of similar stories – about specific people, even including revelations of the Nazis – and his experience shows.
Naturally, the accident had to be included – this may also have been the ‘trigger’ to publish this life story which was printed the year after the event – showing an openly grieving father mourning his son. However, there is a lot more to this tale than meets the eye and to that I can add my voice as I lived in London myself at the time. Murder, mayhem and conspiracy theories galore, which, it now appears, may well have been founded on previous experiences and traumas Mohamed (Al) Fayed went through in his life.
A fascinating biography of an interesting man on so many levels, from his birth in Egypt to becoming the owner of worldly Harrods in London and, as is often the case in matters such as these, it was not always a pleasant journey for the man himself or the people around him.
November 24, 2014
Tom Bower seems to delight in writing the life histories of those who may wish their life and times to be shown in a rather more flattering and sympathetic light. Good on you sport.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews