By day, the mild-mannered Omar Al Bahiti works a fairly typical marketing job in Dubai, lives in a fairly typical villa in Jumeirah Village Triangle and has fairly typical barbecues with his family and friends. Beneath his fairly typical exterior, however, lurks a collector of epic proportions.
Click here for a photo gallery of Omar Al Bahiti’s memorabilia collection
Al Bahiti's villa is a veritable museum of Star Wars memorabilia. Terrifyingly, he tells me he has only around 30 per cent of his total collection on display — the rest is in storage spread between Saudi Arabia and Turkey, and in what seems a conservative estimate, puts the total value at more than US$300,000 (Dh1.1 million). He has been collecting the items since he was a child, from the outset keeping anything he acquired in its original packaging.
"Even if I did take something out, I'd do so really carefully and put it straight back in again after," he says. "We'd go on trips to Europe and all I'd want to do was collect more Star Wars toys."
Al Bahiti, who is also garrison commander of the UAE outpost of the Star Wars uber-fan imperial costuming group The 501st Legion, claims to possess the largest collection of Star Wars memorabilia outside the United States and Europe, and he kindly invited us round to see it.
1 Stormtrooper blaster
This perhaps is the only item in Al Bahiti’s collection that has almost led to his arrest. Travelling through Istanbul Airport, Al Bahiti mentioned to security that he had a collectable item in his hand luggage, but was waved through. Unfortunately when the outline of the blaster showed up on the X-ray, the security staff were less understanding. After meeting half of the Turkish army and police force, Al Bahiti was eventually cleared to travel and escorted to the plane under armed guard. As a final punchline, when boarding the plane, Al Bahiti was asked for his passport by his escorts. He says: “You should have seen the guy’s face. It was post-911, and I was travelling on a Saudi passport.”
2 Imperial TIE fighter pilot
A fairly typical domestic scene at Al Bahiti’s house sees him chilling on the sofa with his friends — an imperial TIE fighter pilot and a Stormtrooper. The Stormtrooper is Al Bahiti’s own outfit that he uses when “trooping” with his 501st legion friends. The outfits have to be meticulously inspected and approved for authenticity by the legion before members are accepted. The TIE fighter pilot came from a convention Al Bahiti attended. He says: “The model was actually assembled at the convention and there was no box for it, so at the end of the convention I just had to take the complete model and put it in the passenger seat of my car. You should have seen the looks I was getting in traffic with my co-pilot next to me. It’s actually based on a Stormtrooper helmet with the pipes and extra parts built around it. Eventually I’ll have the imperial insignia put on it, too, and use it as an outfit, but I’m waiting to make sure I do it right — you can only do it once.”
3 R2D2
Who needs a maid when your villa comes with its own mechadroid? Al Bahiti’s R2 unit is currently static and speaks courtesy of an inbuilt iPod featuring samples of the droid’s trademark squeaks and bleeps. However, inspired by the British droid builders Lee Towersey and Oliver Steeples, who have been taken on to build a complete working model for the new movie, Al Bahiti hopes to use a selection of turntables, motors and servos to bring his own model completely to life. Al Bahiti’s unit was built by Stormtrooper designer Andrew Ainsworth for this year’s Comic Con Middle East in March. Al Bahiti says: “I said to Ainsworth: ‘Look, there is no way that’s going home with you. I’ll save you the shipping cost!’”
4 Painting by Ralph McQuarrie
One of the more understated parts of Al Bahiti's collection, but also one of the most valuable. This is an original painting of the very first scene from the first film, Star Wars: A New Hope, by Ralph McQuarrie. McQuarrie was the conceptual designer behind the original trilogy and created characters including Darth Vader, R2D2 and Chewbacca. McQuarrie, who died in 2012, also designed characters for the likes of Battlestar Galactica and ET; this is one of only two of his original paintings of this particular scene.
5 Lightsabers
No Star Wars collection would be complete without a lightsaber, and Al Bahiti has several. His collection includes replicas of the weapons used by all the main Jedi and Sith characters in the six films to date by manufacturer Master Replicas. The lightsabers are remarkably authentic, and mimic the unforgettable sound made by the ones in the films. Master Replicas was wound down following its takeover by Corgi a few years ago, so this is another part of Al Bahiti's collection that is getting rarer by the day.
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Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Asia Cup Qualifier
Final
UAE v Hong Kong
Live on OSN Cricket HD. Coverage starts at 5.30am
La Mer lowdown
La Mer beach is open from 10am until midnight, daily, and is located in Jumeirah 1, well after Kite Beach. Some restaurants, like Cupagahwa, are open from 8am for breakfast; most others start at noon. At the time of writing, we noticed that signs for Vicolo, an Italian eatery, and Kaftan, a Turkish restaurant, indicated that these two restaurants will be open soon, most likely this month. Parking is available, as well as a Dh100 all-day valet option or a Dh50 valet service if you’re just stopping by for a few hours.
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
Info
What: 11th edition of the Mubadala World Tennis Championship
When: December 27-29, 2018
Confirmed: men: Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Kevin Anderson, Dominic Thiem, Hyeon Chung, Karen Khachanov; women: Venus Williams
Tickets: www.ticketmaster.ae, Virgin megastores or call 800 86 823
Uefa Nations League
League A:
Germany, Portugal, Belgium, Spain, France, England, Switzerland, Italy, Poland, Iceland, Croatia, Netherlands
League B:
Austria, Wales, Russia, Slovakia, Sweden, Ukraine, Republic of Ireland, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, Denmark, Czech Republic, Turkey
League C:
Hungary, Romania, Scotland, Slovenia, Greece, Serbia, Albania, Norway, Montenegro, Israel, Bulgaria, Finland, Cyprus, Estonia, Lithuania
League D:
Azerbaijan, Macedonia, Belarus, Georgia, Armenia, Latvia, Faroe Islands, Luxembourg, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Liechtenstein, Malta, Andorra, Kosovo, San Marino, Gibraltar
The biog
Favourite hobby: I love to sing but I don’t get to sing as much nowadays sadly.
Favourite book: Anything by Sidney Sheldon.
Favourite movie: The Exorcist 2. It is a big thing in our family to sit around together and watch horror movies, I love watching them.
Favourite holiday destination: The favourite place I have been to is Florence, it is a beautiful city. My dream though has always been to visit Cyprus, I really want to go there.
End of free parking
- paid-for parking will be rolled across Abu Dhabi island on August 18
- drivers will have three working weeks leeway before fines are issued
- areas that are currently free to park - around Sheikh Zayed Bridge, Maqta Bridge, Mussaffah Bridge and the Corniche - will now require a ticket
- villa residents will need a permit to park outside their home. One vehicle is Dh800 and a second is Dh1,200.
- The penalty for failing to pay for a ticket after 10 minutes will be Dh200
- Parking on a patch of sand will incur a fine of Dh300
Seemar’s top six for the Dubai World Cup Carnival:
1. Reynaldothewizard
2. North America
3. Raven’s Corner
4. Hawkesbury
5. New Maharajah
6. Secret Ambition
Past winners of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
2016 Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
2015 Nico Rosberg (Mercedes-GP)
2014 Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
2013 Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Racing)
2012 Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus)
2011 Lewis Hamilton (McLaren)
2010 Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Racing)
2009 Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Racing)
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
