Al Fayed, Predator at Harrods: 1. Golden opportunity
World Of Secrets
BBC
4.7 • 765 Ratings
🗓️ 19 September 2024
⏱️ 30 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
A dream job offer arrives from Harrods, to the surprise of debutant teenager Cheska. Why is one of the world’s most famous luxury shops interested in her? How do they know where she lives - where to send the letter? It’s the 1990s in London. Cheska and other rich girls are being introduced to high society, as part of an centuries old tradition. What should she do next? Soon after she gets the job offer, Cheska is working in owner Mohamed Al Fayed’s personal office in London’s exclusive Park Lane. Can Al Fayed help her with her ambition to act?
This season of World of Secrets is about sexual abuse, and includes descriptions which some listeners might find distressing.
If you’ve been affected by any of the issues in this series, please contact support organisations in your own country. For a list of organisations in the UK that can provide support for survivors of sexual abuse, go to bbc.co.uk/actionline.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Before this BBC podcast kicks off, I'd like to tell you about some others you might enjoy. |
| 0:05.0 | My name's Will Wilkin and I Commission Music Podcast for the BBC. |
| 0:08.0 | It's a really cool job, but every day we get to tell the incredible stories behind songs, moments and movements, |
| 0:14.7 | stories of struggle and success, rises and falls, the funny, the ridiculous. |
| 0:19.1 | And the BBC's position at the heart of British music means we can tell those stories like no one else. |
| 0:24.6 | We were, are and always will be right there at the center of the narrative. |
| 0:28.6 | So whether you want an insightful take on music right now or a nostalgic deep dive into some of the most famous and |
| 0:34.4 | infamous moments in music check out the music podcasts on BBC Sounds. |
| 0:38.6 | Just a warning before we start this season of World of Secrets includes descriptions of sexual |
| 0:44.0 | assault and violence which some listeners may find distressing. The first word out of his mouth was an expletive beginning with Eshch. |
| 1:01.0 | The language is out of keeping with the setting. |
| 1:03.0 | It's a bright day in 1994. |
| 1:06.0 | A man, we're calling Steve, is standing alone before his boss, |
| 1:10.0 | in a tent, on the grounds of an expansive villa in Santropay, a glitzy coastal town on the French Riviera, |
| 1:17.0 | known for its beaches and nightlife. |
| 1:20.0 | Then he carried on for about five minutes. It was a rant actually. |
| 1:25.0 | Steve's used to the fruity language. |
| 1:28.0 | He's just finished 17 years in the British Army. |
| 1:31.0 | Now he's a bodyguard to a billionaire businessman, the owner of |
| 1:35.1 | luxury icons in London, Paris and cities across the globe. He didn't trust anybody |
| 1:41.0 | within his organization which then led on to he didn't trust |
| 1:46.4 | anybody in the British establishment which then led on to some comments about the |
... |
Transcript will be available on the free plan in -194 days. Upgrade to see the full transcript now.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from BBC, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of BBC and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2025.