Robert Tchenguiz was born in Tehran, Iran, to an Iraqi-Jewish family, the son of Victor and Violet Khadouri.
15 Facts About Robert Tchenguiz
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Robert Tchenguiz's family left Iraq in 1948 and settled in Iran, where his father, a jeweler, worked for the Shah and ran the country's mint.
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Robert Tchenguiz changed the family surname from Khadouri to Tchenguiz.
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Robert Tchenguiz has one brother, Vincent Tchenguiz, and one sister, Lisa Tchenguiz.
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Robert Tchenguiz lost millions of pounds in Kaupthing's collapse.
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However, Tchenguiz took legal action against Grant Thornton and partners at the firm who he claimed had misled the SFO into investigating him and brother Vincent, though the dispute reportedly created a rift between the brothers due to a legal row over administration of the Tchenguiz Family Trust; main beneficiary Vincent was accused by Robert of making false representations "of a serious nature" about him to Grant Thornton.
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In November 2023, Robert Tchenguiz settled his FirstGroup-related dispute with Entain, the former owner of Gibraltar-based InterTrader.
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In May 2020, Robert Tchenguiz submitted plans to Westminster City Council to convert the former headquarters of MI5 into a 65-bedroom private members' hotel.
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The council, backed by the Planning Inspectorate, refused his plans, and in October 2022 Robert Tchenguiz lodged an appeal.
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In February 2023, Robert Tchenguiz amended his proposals, planning a medical and diagnostic facility instead of a private members' hotel.
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Robert Tchenguiz once dated model Caprice Bourret and was close to Diana, Princess of Wales.
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Details about his domestic arrangements were described in a May 2018 BBC documentary The Rise and Fall of the Playboy Billionaire, prompting Robert Tchenguiz to threaten legal action against the BBC, and to appoint former Bell Pottinger CEO James Henderson as his PR advisor.
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In January 2018, Robert Tchenguiz was reported to have been on the invitation list to a controversial Presidents Club dinner in London.
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Bird took their two children to see her family in the US in late 2020 and did not return, prompting Robert Tchenguiz to start a legal action under the Hague Convention alleging Bird had abducted the children.
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In March 2022, Robert Tchenguiz won a court ruling against Westminster City Council after anti-terrorism traffic arrangements near the Royal Albert Hall restricted access to his home.