After Dinner Speakers: Mohamed Al Fayed, The Commitments, Malandra Burrows

he is the father who lost his son in tragic and very public circumstances, who has been denied British citizenship despite employing thousands of people in the UK. Not only is Mr al-Fayed one of the highest profile shop owners in the UK, but the death of his son alongside Diana, Princess of Wales, thrust him further into the public spotlight which he has been dancing in and out of for years. The tragic circumstances of losing a son has led to Mr al-Fayed feeling a deep sense of injustice, and he has pointed the finger several times at people he believes were responsible for the accident. He has resurrected the satirical magazine Punch and also moved into the mainstream British pursuit of football, buying Fulham FC, and earlier this year offered up the club's manager Kevin Keegan when the English national team was managerless. Mr al-Fayed was born in Alexandria, Egypt, the eldest son of a primary school teacher, he took up a number of menial jobs, from selling Coca-Cola on the streets of his home city to working as a sewing machine salesman. A fascinating speaker with much to say on a diverse range of subjects.