Finally… Diana and Dodi statue leaves Harrods
THE nation’s most famous department store has finally disposed of its most controversial asset – the 10ft tall statue of Princess Diana and Dodi Al Fayed known as Innocent Victims.
Previously sandwiched between Harrods’ ‘Egyptian escalators’, the life-sized bronze was erected by former owner Mohamed Al Fayed in 2005 to ‘keep their spirits alive’.
However many saw it as a gaudy reminder of the couple’s tragic death in 1997.
Now a blank space of discoloured marble remains where Diana’s bare feet once stood and Mohamed, who has the statue at home, has spoken to me exclusively about its removal.
He confirmed to me last night: ‘It is a blessing and a comfort to have the statue of Dodi and Princess Diana in the privacy of our family home after having shared it with the public for so many years in Harrods.
‘Dodi was a wonderful son who lived life to the full and this statue of them both at one of the happiest times of their lives is a perpetual memory to their love and their fulfilled lives. The tragedy and pain of their deaths never eases and we as a family all constantly feel the pain of loss every day.
‘We all also give thanks for Dodi’s life. All that matters in the end is love and I would like to think this statue is a tribute to that which comforts us. ‘The statues have now come home, having been shared with the public for many years. ‘We thank the Qatari holding company, who had continued to keep them at Harrods, but it is time now the statues come to their final place.’ Removal men took the statue while Harrods was closed for Easter and it is now in the Al Fayed garden in Oxted, Surrey. Perhaps it is of little surprise that Diana’s sons were not so keen to claim the bronze, sculpted by William Mitchell, which depicts their mother dancing barefoot with Dodi, holding an albatross – a symbol of freedom and eternity.
Some believe its removal was a deliberate bid by Harrods’ new Qatari owners to reclaim the Royal Warrant, lost in 2000.
The decision to remove the sculpture was taken in the same month last year that William and Harry announced plans for their own tribute to Diana, a statue by Ian Rank-Broadley, due to be erected in the grounds of Kensington Palace in 2019.
Harrods boss Michael Ward said at the time: ‘We feel that the time is right for the public to pay their respects at the Palace.’
A Harrods spokesman tells me they are committed to keeping the area empty of sales goods out of respect, though four male mannequins wearing designer clothes were placed in the area. The spokesman described it as an ‘oversight’.