Who is 45th in line to the British throne? It’s probably Danny Dyer, but the question is irrelevant because in our new, slim monarchy, they will never be on the palace balcony.
But in Saudi Arabia, the question has proven crucial: why did the nation’s founder and first absolute ruler, King Saud, have 45 sons by more than 20 wives – and all of them were fit to succeed him?
The first ten minutes of The Kingdom: The World’s Most Powerful Prince tell us about the country’s next six monarchs, all of whom are half-brothers, because the line of succession ran transversally, from brother to brother, rather than being passed down through the generations. The current king, Salman, was Saud’s 25th son.
He is now 88 and, with no surviving siblings, will be succeeded by his own son, Mohammed bin Salman al Saud – who has had to get rid of many cousins, one way or another, to secure his inheritance.
Saudi Arabia’s founder and first absolute ruler, King Saud, had 45 sons by more than 20 wives – and all of them were fit to succeed him.
King Saud will be succeeded by his own son Mohammed bin Salman al Saud, who had to get rid of many cousins to secure his inheritance.
The bulk of this complicated but intriguing documentary, the first of two, comprises a portrait of the crown prince, told partly by those who know him – friends and foes – but mainly through archival footage and narration by Morven Christie. Next week’s episode covers the infamous murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Mohammed likes to be called by his initials, MBS. It seems an odd choice, as it sounds like a furniture store with permanent sales.
He has much cooler nicknames, like Bullet Boy (because he supposedly once sent a judge an envelope with a bullet inside, as a clue to ensure a court ruling would go his way).
After launching an attack on Houthi rebels in neighbouring Yemen, giving his American allies just 12 hours’ notice of his intentions, Saudi media began calling him the Prince of Decision – a title the Duke of Edinburgh might have envied.
MBS’s typical politics range from PR stunts to mafia tactics. In April 2016, using the autocratic powers of his elderly father, he stripped Saudi Arabia’s religious police of its power, eliminating its influence with a single decree.
He then gave the green light to a superhero convention where for the first time men and women were allowed to mix in public, to the fury of ultra-conservatives.
But he is also known for taking rivals hostage and intimidating them into submission. Dissent is forbidden and the law is enforced by kidnapping squads.
Experts such as UK security adviser Sir Kim Darrouch and former MI6 chief Sir John Sawers offered cautious opinions that helped unravel the contradictions in MBS’s personality.
He is a smiling playboy, who loves the Maldives and owns a South African game reserve. But a former senior Saudi official, now in exile, claims he also once proposed assassinating his father’s predecessor as king.
The murder weapon was to be a handshake, while an old Russian ring armed with a poisoned needle was carried.
You’re unlikely to hear a strange story all week.