Bianca Gascoigne has told how Mohamed Al Fayed subjected her to an alleged “horrific” sexual assault after she started working at Harrods as a 16-year-old.
The 37-year-old daughter of the England footballer Paul Gascoigne said she had not spoken out before because of “embarrassment and shame”.
More than 200 women have come forward to lawyers with allegations relating to the late businessman since a BBC documentary on Fayed was broadcast last month. The Met police have said that 21 women had approached the force before the BBC film and that a further 60 further women have contacted them since.
According to Harrods, the luxury store in Knightsbridge owned by Fayed until 2010, more than 250 people are part of its process to settle compensation claims.
Gascoigne, a model and reality TV star, said she had got to know Fayed through her parents, Paul and Sheryl. She said: “He used to tell me how much of a bad father my dad was, because he used to come into the store drunk.
“He used to tell me that he [Gascoigne] was an embarrassment, that I should look to him as a father figure. I just felt a false sense of security with him early doors, because I used to go into the store with my mum and dad, and he used to come over, be very charming, bring us gifts, very personable. So I literally felt quite safe in his presence early doors.”
Gascoigne started to work at Harrods aged 16 and she claimed that on one evening Fayed offered her the opportunity to stay in Harrods’ Park Lane apartment before a work flight.
Speaking publicly about it for the first time on Sky’s The UK Tonight with Sarah-Jane Mee, Gascoigne said: “He turned up at the apartment, to my shock. I just couldn’t believe it. I was just gobsmacked. I was kind of very shell-shocked, that I just didn’t really know what to do.
“He came in, and then he sat me down on the sofa and was obviously very forceful with the touching and the kissing. He got his private out and got my hand and was trying to manoeuvre it on his parts, and when that didn’t work, he was trying to force my head on his lap.
“I don’t know how but I managed to wiggle away. I think possibly that him knowing my parents … I don’t know, that might have saved me at that moment, but it was horrific.
“Obviously, I loved my job, because it was exactly what I wanted to do – that was my dream.”
Asked why she had not spoken out earlier about Fayed, who died last year at the age of 93, Gascoigne said: “I was just trying to deal with what I was dealing with, what was going on, because it was just so horrific – and I just didn’t want to lose my job at that point.
“He told me that if I would say anything that I would lose my job. So I just really got scared. I look back now and just feel very sorry for my 16-year-old self, and wish I could protect her.
“I feel like I have to do this, I want to do this, and I want to stand for the women and just hopefully make any kind of change [so] that in the future, my daughter wouldn’t have to go through something like this. It would be spoken about, and these predators wouldn’t be able to get away with what they’re getting away with.”
Dean Armstrong KC, Bruce Drummond and Maria Mulla, the lawyers representing the Justice for Harrods Survivors group, said Gascoigne’s experience fitted a pattern of behaviour behind Fayed’s alleged abuse.
They said: “As we pick our way through the sickening morass of Mohamed Al Fayed’s abuse, a unifying thread is the fear and shame our survivors have carried with them in the years since they were targeted and abused.
“Another thread, however, is the power and courage our survivors feel when they speak up about their experiences. As our client Bianca Gascoigne has so bravely testified today, Al Fayed would use Harrods as a lure to attract and abuse, including very young women like Bianca, who was only 16 years old when she was targeted.
“We salute her bravery and are proud to represent her and our other survivors as we move forward together in our quest for justice.”
A Harrods spokesperson said earlier this month: “We want to offer our assistance with any new or existing inquiries the Metropolitan police receive in relation to accusations regarding the actions of Fayed. Harrods is in direct communication with the Metropolitan police to ensure we are offering our assistance with any of their relevant inquiries.”
