Did Dodi Fayed Buy Princess Diana an Engagement Ring?

The relationship between Princess Diana and Hollywood movie producer and Harrods heir Dodi Fayed has been the subject of countless speculative reports, conspiracy theories and on-screen depictions since the couple's tragic deaths following a Paris car crash in 1997.

The latest project to explore the couple's romance is Netflix's hit royal drama The Crown, which debuted the first part of its final season on November 16.

The show chronicles the life and times of Queen Elizabeth II and her family, with the final season's first four episodes covering the last days, death and its aftermath of Diana at the age of 36 on August 31, 1997.

In the show, Diana (played by Elizabeth Debicki) and Dodi (Khalid Abdalla) are portrayed on their final vacation in the South of France before spending their last day together in Paris before the crash that ended their lives.

Included in the portrayal is a fictionalized version of a proposal of marriage from Fayed, encouraged by his father, billionaire businessman Mohamed Al-Fayed.

The proposal is made with a ring shown in an earlier episode which was offhandedly pointed to by Diana while in Monte Carlo. In real life, the ring has been the source of intense speculation and the key to a theory claiming that the princess had accepted a proposal of marriage and was intending on announcing it to the public.

Here, Newsweek explores what we know for sure about Diana, Dodi and the diamond ring depicted in The Crown.

Were Dodi Fayed and Princess Diana Dating?

Dodi Fayed and Princess Diana were dating in the weeks before their deaths in 1997.

Reports suggest that the couple began seeing each other in July 1997, after the princess spent a holiday in the South of France with the Fayed family and her two sons, Prince William and Prince Harry.

The royal had recently split from her long-term boyfriend, the heart surgeon Hasnat Khan.

By early August the paparazzi had photographed Diana and Dodi kissing on the Al-Fayed yacht, the Jonikal, in France. At the time, Dodi had still been in a relationship with his American model partner, Kelly Fisher.

In late August the couple took a second vacation aboard the Jonikal yacht in the South of France. They planned to return to London via Paris where they intended on spending one night.

In the early hours of the morning on August 31, 1997, the couple were traveling from the Ritz Hotel to Fayed's apartment when the car they were traveling in collided with a structural pillar in a road tunnel.

An inquest in 2008 found that the crash had been caused by the dangerous driving of the chauffer who had been over the legal blood alcohol limit at the time of the accident and the dangerous driving of the pursuing paparazzi photographers.

Dodi and the driver, Henri Paul, died at the scene. Diana was taken to the Pitié-Salpêtrière hospital where attempts to save her life were unsuccessful. Fayed's bodyguard, Trevor Rees-Jones, was the only survivor of the crash.

Did Dodi Fayed Buy Princess Diana a Ring Before They Died?

According to the 2006 official U.K. police report investigating conspiracy theories surrounding the death of Princess Diana, known as "Operation Paget," Dodi Fayed did buy the princess a diamond ring before their deaths.

When in Paris on August 30, the couple spent time at the Ritz hotel which was owned by Fayed's father. During this time, Fayed left the hotel to visit the Repossi jewelry store on the other side of the Place Vendôme square.

Operation Paget outlines that Fayed looked at several pieces of jewelry during his visit but left with just a catalogue. Within an hour, Claude Roulet, assistant to the president of the Ritz, paid a visit to the store and selected two rings on behalf of Fayed which he took to the hotel and placed in their safe.

One of the rings was from the Repossi collection named "Dis Moi Oui," which translates to "Tell Me Yes" in English.

Roulet told Operation Paget investigators that Fayed did not tell him which rings to pick from Repossi but that he chose them himself on the understanding that one would be a selected as a gift for Diana.

Fayed was shown the rings by Roulet at the hotel and the "Dis Moi Oui" model was chosen. Fayed then took the ring to his apartment nearby at rue Arsène Houssaye with Diana, though is not believed to have shown it to the princess beforehand.

Did Dodi Fayed Propose to Princess Diana?

Two main sources have claimed that Dodi Fayed proposed to or was intending to propose to Princess Diana in the hours before their deaths.

The first is Mohamed Al-Fayed, who claimed that his son and Diana told him that they were engaged in a phone call on the evening of August 30 from Dodi's apartment.

The second is Fayed's butler, René Delorm, who told Operation Paget that Fayed had expressed to him his intention to propose. He also said he witnessed Fayed on one knee at his apartment and heard Diana say the word "yes," however could not be certain that this was in response to an proposal of marriage or of some other question.

Operation Paget interviewed a number of Diana's closest friends, family and staff, none of whom said that the princess was considering remarriage to Fayed following her 1996 divorce from Prince Charles. None had been told of an engagement.

The "Dis Moi Oui" ring was not worn by Diana when she and Fayed left his apartment on the evening of August 30 to have dinner at the Ritz hotel. The investigation could not definitively confirm or disprove whether a proposal had been made or accepted.

What Happened to the 'Dis Moi Oui' Ring After Dodi and Diana's Deaths?

After dining at the Ritz hotel, Diana and Fayed traveled by car back to his apartment on the rue Arsène Houssaye when their fatal crash took place.

In the days after their deaths, staff at Fayed's home found the "Dis Moi Oui" ring among his belongings. It was returned to his father, Mohamed Al-Fayed, who is reported to have paid the outstanding invoice to Repossi for the item.

The ring is believed to have still remained in Al-Fayed's possession at the time of his death in August 2023.

In 2005, Fayed displayed the ring in a memorial to the princess and his son, erected at his Harrods department store in London.

The Crown Season 6 Part 1 is available to stream now on Netflix.

James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on X (formerly Twitter) at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.

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