Gavin and Stacey fans have been left baffled after a resurfaced clip from the BBC series appeared to suggest that lead character Nessa ‘knew’ about wrongdoings by a former Harrods owner
Gavin and Stacey’s Nessa previously made claims about a former Harrods owner in a resurfaced clip.
Mohamed Al-Fayed has been branded a “monster” as a probe by lawyers into him widened and more sickening allegations emerged on Friday. After a BBC documentary, more than 100 women have now come forward accusing him of sexual abuse and rape. Lawyers are now looking into his time in charge of Fulham FC and the Paris Ritz after one alleged victim claimed he operated a “lion’s den” of depravity.
Harrods was accused of being plagued by a “toxic” culture under Al Fayed’s 25-year rule, where young female staff were procured for him “for sexual gratification”. Now, Gavin and Stacey fans have been left bewildered as a clip of Nessa (Ruth Jones) discussing Al-Fayed has resurfaced.
In the clip from the BBC comedy, Nessa said: “This is what happens when you mix work and relationships. I remember when I was working in Harrods. I got involved with the boss and I mean the big boss. Cracking little fella, he used to take me to football every Saturday, couldn’t do enough for me.”
“As soon as he got what he wanted, down there right,” Nessa said as she pointed at her crotch before adding: “He didn’t want to know, tried palming me off with his son and he was trouble. Kept texting me every day from his boat and in the end, I had to say to him ‘Oh back off’, give him his dues he did and I’ve not heard a peep from him. And I’m talking years.” However, there is no indication that Nessa was referring to Al-Fayed.
Fans have shared the clip on the social media site TikTok with one saying: “The truth was known years ago.” A second added: “Nessa knew the truth.” Speaking in 2009 about Nessa’s fictional encounters, Ruth Jones said: “What’s interesting is that people assume they know who Nessa is referring to in her past a lot of the time but in fact they get it wrong. For example, we have never mentioned the actual name Mohamed Al Fayed. Or Richard Madeley. But people have made assumptions about them.”
Barrister Dean Armstrong KC told a press conference the case “combines some of the most horrific elements of those involving Jimmy Savile, Jeffrey Epstein and Harvey Weinstein”. He added: “I have many years of practice but I have never seen a case as horrific as this. We will say plainly, Mohammed Al Fayed was a monster.”
Barrister Bruce Drummond said: “This is one of the worst cases of corporate sexual exploitation that certainly I, and perhaps the world, has ever seen. It was absolutely horrific and I can’t stress that word enough.” Mr Drummond said alleged victims have contacted him from the US, Canada, Malaysia, Australia, Italy and Romania to describe how they were preyed on at the plush London store he owned from 1986 to 2010.
One, called Natacha, told the press conference that Egytian-born Al Fayed lured her to his private flat “on the pretext of a job review”. She said: “The door was locked behind me… I saw his bedroom door partially open, there were sex toys on view. I felt petrified. I perched myself at the very end of the sofa and then Mohamed Al Fayed, my boss, the person I worked for, pushed himself onto me.”
Natacha told how she managed to “kick-off” Al Fayed, who then laughed at her and warned her “in no uncertain terms she would never work in London again” if she breathed a word about the attack. She added: “He told me he knew where my family lived. I felt scared and sick. He had behaved like a father figure, often saying ‘call me papa’, as if to make me feel safe.”
Lawyers said Thursday’s BBC documentary Al Fayed: Predator at Harrods sparked an overwhelming response. It claimed he was free to abuse female staff for a quarter of a century. A number of the alleged victims claimed they were “required” to have invasive examinations for sexually transmitted diseases. Mr Drummond said some have ended up in “psychiatric care”. He added: “This should never have happened and Harrods must accept responsibility for the damage these women have suffered.”
“Unbeknownst to me, I had walked into a lion’s den, a layer of cover-ups, deceit, lies, manipulation, humiliation and gross sexual misconduct. He preyed on the most vulnerable, those of us who needed to pay the rent or didn’t have parents to protect them.” Harrods current owners have said they were “appalled” by the allegations and apologised to victims. Fulham said it is trying to establish whether Al Fayed, who bought the club in 1997, attacked employees.
When approached, the BBC declined to comment. The Mirror has approached Gavin and Stacey co-writer Ruth Jones for comment.
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