To say Salim Daw is overjoyed with being cast in Netflix's The Crown is an enormous understatement. “Every day I arrived on set full of energy,” says the veteran Palestinian actor, whose recent credits include HBO movie Oslo and the Nasser brothers’ movie Gaza Mon Amour.
“I’m so happy, I’m dancing, I’m laughing, I make people laugh around me because I’m happy. I’m so lucky. How much I can say that? How much? How many times?” he grins. “You can have this chance once in your life as actor — to do a character like this.”
Speaking over Zoom, he’s sitting with his arm around his "son", Egyptian-British actor Khalid Abdalla (The Kite Runner). Together they are playing the Egyptian-born billionaire Mohamed Al-Fayed and his offspring Dodi Al-Fayed, two of the highest profile additions to Netflix’s premier drama about the British royal family. Season five focuses on the 1990s era, when Dodi dated Princess Diana after her divorce from Prince Charles and when, tragically, both were killed in a car accident in a Parisian underpass.
The Al-Fayeds’ arrival in the show begins in episode three, when Daw’s Mohamed is seen trying to cosy up to the British establishment by purchasing Harrods, the luxury London department store. Dodi, meanwhile, is a budding film producer, having already helped bankroll (with his father’s money) the Oscar-winning Chariots of Fire. But, as Abdalla puts it, Dodi is more of a mystery than his father.
“He’s a person who we’ve heard spoken about. And he’s been on people’s lips for 25 years, but people know very little about. And the only word that sort of follows him around is ‘playboy’, which is not in any way how I see myself. I went into my meeting with Peter [Morgan, the series creator] crucially trying to understand something: ‘Is this going to be a character who’s represented as a token figure that just sort of passes by?’”
Thankfully, the answer was "no". This season of The Crown — which sees Imelda Staunton replace Olivia Colman as Queen Elizabeth II — takes its sweet time. Abdalla only briefly shares one scene with Australian actress Elizabeth Debicki, an uncannily strong casting choice as Diana, when they first meet at an equestrian event. It’s Daw who enjoyed more screen time with her, as Mohamed and Diana playfully discuss how they see themselves as outsiders. “Honestly, we became friends. From the first meeting,” Daw says of his co-star.
“They’re there, the two of them, at the horse show and they have this magnificent scene together,” adds Abdalla. “I was there on the day just watching them ... jealous! And then there was just this really weird moment, frankly, where Elizabeth was looking at me. And I was like: ‘That’s Elizabeth playing Diana. She’s looking at me. What’s she doing looking at me? This is weird.’ But a beautiful prefiguring of everything that’s come to pass in season six.”
Both Daw and Abdalla will be returning for the sixth (and final) season of The Crown, which rather gives away the fact that the Diana/Dodi narrative isn’t concluded in the fifth season.
“We can’t tell you how many episodes it is but we’re certainly coming back,” says Abdalla. “There are plenty of us there. How else could you tell the story? There have been lots of paparazzi photos of us on boats.” True enough, although it’s not all just swanning around on luxury yachts.
Both men dived into the research The Crown’s team presented them with. Daw admits he was "a little bit lost" with the documents and videos.
“So I have to be serious, and to be respectful … to be able to do this character," he says. "I have to learn more and more about him, more and more, because it’s a big responsibility for me as a person.” While Mohamed Al-Fayed has been a relatively visible presence since the death of his son, Abdalla had much less to go on when trying to understand Dodi, whose life put him on a parallel course to Prince Charles — another son weighed down by expectations.
Abdalla says Dodi wasn't allowed to see his mother for most of his life. He says: "He went to boarding schools, and he had this very complex, complicated relationship with his father, who was a larger than life character. And in a way that is thematically resonant for The Crown [his father] wants him to be something that maybe he doesn’t want to be himself. And so how does he navigate that?”
Certainly, it seems that Peter Morgan’s promise that Dodi and his father won’t merely be token characters is genuine. How else will we feel the loss of Dodi when he dies?
“Similarly to what happens to Diana, in terms of your journey of understanding who she is, you have the similar thing happened with Mohamed Al-Fayed and Dodi,” adds Abdalla. “You can’t do that without the core parental relationship, which was so central. You won’t be able to explore the grief, you won’t be able to explore any of it.”
It all suggests that final season of The Crown is going to be a real weepie.
The Crown's fifth season is available on Netflix from Wednesday.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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%3Cp%3E%0D%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E6-cylinder%2C%204.8-litre%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E5-speed%20automatic%20and%20manual%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E280%20brake%20horsepower%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E451Nm%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Efrom%20Dh153%2C00%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Enow%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Directed: Smeep Kang
Produced: Soham Rockstar Entertainment; SKE Production
Cast: Rishi Kapoor, Jimmy Sheirgill, Sunny Singh, Omkar Kapoor, Rajesh Sharma
Rating: Two out of five stars
MATCH INFO
Barcelona 4 (Messi 23' pen, 45 1', 48', Busquets 85')
Celta Vigo 1 (Olaza 42')
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
ASHES SCHEDULE
First Test
November 23-27 (The Gabba, Brisbane)
Second Test
December 2-6 (Adelaide Oval, Adelaide)
Third Test
December 14-18 (Waca Ground, Perth)
Fourth Test
December 26-30 (Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne)
Fifth Test
January 4-8, 2018 (Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney)
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Vault%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJune%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECo-founders%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EBilal%20Abou-Diab%20and%20Sami%20Abdul%20Hadi%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAbu%20Dhabi%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ELicensed%20by%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Abu%20Dhabi%20Global%20Market%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EInvestment%20and%20wealth%20advisory%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E%241%20million%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EOutliers%20VC%20and%20angel%20investors%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E14%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Know before you go
- Jebel Akhdar is a two-hour drive from Muscat airport or a six-hour drive from Dubai. It’s impossible to visit by car unless you have a 4x4. Phone ahead to the hotel to arrange a transfer.
- If you’re driving, make sure your insurance covers Oman.
- By air: Budget airlines Air Arabia, Flydubai and SalamAir offer direct routes to Muscat from the UAE.
- Tourists from the Emirates (UAE nationals not included) must apply for an Omani visa online before arrival at evisa.rop.gov.om. The process typically takes several days.
- Flash floods are probable due to the terrain and a lack of drainage. Always check the weather before venturing into any canyons or other remote areas and identify a plan of escape that includes high ground, shelter and parking where your car won’t be overtaken by sudden downpours.
Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
The Bloomberg Billionaire Index in full
1 Jeff Bezos $140 billion
2 Bill Gates $98.3 billion
3 Bernard Arnault $83.1 billion
4 Warren Buffett $83 billion
5 Amancio Ortega $67.9 billion
6 Mark Zuckerberg $67.3 billion
7 Larry Page $56.8 billion
8 Larry Ellison $56.1 billion
9 Sergey Brin $55.2 billion
10 Carlos Slim $55.2 billion
Financial considerations before buying a property
Buyers should try to pay as much in cash as possible for a property, limiting the mortgage value to as little as they can afford. This means they not only pay less in interest but their monthly costs are also reduced. Ideally, the monthly mortgage payment should not exceed 20 per cent of the purchaser’s total household income, says Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching.
“If it’s a rental property, plan for the property to have periods when it does not have a tenant. Ensure you have enough cash set aside to pay the mortgage and other costs during these periods, ideally at least six months,” she says.
Also, shop around for the best mortgage interest rate. Understand the terms and conditions, especially what happens after any introductory periods, Ms Glynn adds.
Using a good mortgage broker is worth the investment to obtain the best rate available for a buyer’s needs and circumstances. A good mortgage broker will help the buyer understand the terms and conditions of the mortgage and make the purchasing process efficient and easier.
Gran Gala del Calcio 2019 winners
Best Player: Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus)
Best Coach: Gian Piero Gasperini (Atalanta)
Best Referee: Gianluca Rocchi
Best Goal: Fabio Quagliarella (Sampdoria vs Napoli)
Best Team: Atalanta
Best XI: Samir Handanovic (Inter); Aleksandar Kolarov (Roma), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Kalidou Koulibaly (Napoli), Joao Cancelo (Juventus*); Miralem Pjanic (Juventus), Josip Ilicic (Atalanta), Nicolo Barella (Cagliari*); Fabio Quagliarella (Sampdoria), Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus), Duvan Zapata (Atalanta)
Serie B Best Young Player: Sandro Tonali (Brescia)
Best Women’s Goal: Thaisa (Milan vs Juventus)
Best Women’s Player: Manuela Giugliano (Milan)
Best Women’s XI: Laura Giuliani (Milan); Alia Guagni (Fiorentina), Sara Gama (Juventus), Cecilia Salvai (Juventus), Elisa Bartoli (Roma); Aurora Galli (Juventus), Manuela Giugliano (Roma), Valentina Cernoia (Juventus); Valentina Giacinti (Milan), Ilaria Mauro (Fiorentina), Barbara Bonansea (Juventus)
