It seems to me that Sotheby's is very much like the British monarchy: an old and apparently very venerable institution which is in fact very nimble on its feet, an institution invested with a great deal more self-interest than the public image would suggest. Robert Lacey apparentlybritishdeal share on social
I lived in Saudi Arabia in the late 1970s. It was, for a Westerner, pretty idyllic. There were the religious police; there were the rules; there were the prayer times. But it was as if we were existing in two separate universes. The Westerners were just allowed to get on with their way of life. Robert Lacey 1970sallowarabia share on social
Saud bin Abd al-Aziz was the moon-faced, shortsighted, bespectacled son of the old founder of Saudi Arabia, who'd always been his father's protege but had never quite lived up to everything that his father had. Robert Lacey abdarabiaaziz share on social
What royal families are very good at doing is surviving and reinventing themselves. That's true whether it's a constitutional monarchy in Britain or an authoritarian monarchy. Robert Lacey authoritarianbritainconstitutional Change image and share on social
Fear generates anger, and fear generates violence, and those were part of what built the Saudi state. Robert Lacey angerbuildfear Change image and share on social
It's true; I'm fascinated by elite groups. Robert Lacey elitefascinategroup Change image and share on social
My whole life as a grammar-school boy, getting to Cambridge University and working on the 'London Sunday Times' has been very aspirational. Robert Lacey aspirationalboycambridge Change image and share on social