The Terminal Man - Softcover

Alfred Merhan; Andrew Donkin

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0552152749 ISBN 13: 9780552152747

Publisher: Corgi Books, 2004

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The Terminal Man is the extraordinary story of Mehran Karimi Nasseria, better known as 'Sir Alfred' of Charles de Gaulle Airport. Sir Alfred has spent the last 15 years living and sleeping inside the airport's Terminal One building, trapped in international no-man's land without the proper documentation needed to move on. Sir Alfred was born in Iran in 1945. When he was twenty his father died and he received an even greater shock when the woman he regarded as his mother told him he wasn't her son, but the result of a union between his father and a British nurse. A deal was agreed for Sir Alfred to disappear overseas to England and his family would pay for his studies. After a year at university, his family broke all contact and he returned to Iran where he was imprisoned for his political activism, was arrested and tortured. He was then expelled from Iran with a passport valid for just one year - so he was now a stateless person. He was mugged on his way to Charles de Gaulle airport in 1988 and lost all his documents. He boarded a plane to London but without the appropriate documentation was sent straight back to Paris. On trying to leave the airport he was arrested and sentenced as an illegal immigrant, and served six months in jail. Upon his release, he returned to Charles de Gaulle and was refused permission to enter any other country. Fearing arrest if he left the terminal building but unable to board a flight, he was trapped there for years. He sleeps on a red bench borrowed from an old bar, surrounded by piles of newspapers and magazines stored in cargo boxes and his extensive diary. As Sir Alfred remained trapped between countries his fame began to spread. There have been numerous press and magazines articles around the globe; he receives hundreds of letters from well-wishers as well as his visits and has also featured in three documentary feature films about his plight as the world's only celebrity homeless person. Political refugee, prisoner, exile, rebel, gentleman, citizen of the world, media magnet and, most of all, delayed passenger, The Terminal Man tells Sir Alfred's incredible and unique life story in his own words.

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From the Back Cover

The extraordinary true story of Mehran Karimi Nasseria, better know as 'Sir Alfred' - a man with no official identity or country.

Sir Alfred has been living in the departure lounge of Terminal 1 of Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris for 16 years. He sleeps on a red bench borrowed from an old bar, dines at McDonalds every day, and is surrounded by piles of magazines stored in cargo boxes and his extensive diary.

Sir Alfred's odyssey began when the death of his father revealed a long hidden family secret that shattered his life and sense of self. A secret that meant Sir Alfred had to leave the country to travel to England to study. When all communications with his family mysteriously stopped, Sir Alfred was forced to return to Iran where he was arrested at the airport. He was imprisoned, tortured, and then expelled with a passport valid for just one year.

He arrived at Charles de Gaulle on 8th August 1988 intending to take a plane to London - amazingly 16 years later he is still there waiting for his flight. Without the proper documentation he quickly found himself trapped in a bureaucratic Catch-22 nightmare. Fearing arrest as an illegal immigrant if he left the terminal building, he has spent the last decade and a half waiting "for my identity" while lawyers and government officials argued about his case.

Political refugee, prisoner, exile, rebel, gentleman, citizen of the world, media magnet and delayed passenger, The Terminal Man tells Sir Alfred's incredible and unique life story in his own words.

About the Author

Sir Alfred Mehran:
Sir Alfred Mehran is an international traveller who has been trapped at Terminal One of Charles de Gaulle, Paris, for the last sixteen years. He eats, sleeps, and lives his daily life on a red bench saved from the airport's old 'Bye Bye Bar'. He has become the most famous homeless person in the world. Sir Alfred is 59.

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