List of Alex Rider Characters - Main Antagonists - Sir Damian Cray

Sir Damian Cray

Damian Cray is the main antagonist of Eagle Strike.

Cray was born in North London on October 5, 1950, and baptised as Harold Eric Lunt. Although he desired to be a pop or rock star, his parents sent him to the Royal Academy of Music in London. He sang there with a young Elton John. When he was thirteen, his parents died in a bizarre accident, obviously Cray's doing, which involved a car falling on them. Although he welcomed their deaths, he pretended to be distraught and left the Royal Academy to travel the world. He changed his name and became BuddhIist and vegetarian.

He returned to England in the 1970s and enjoyed a hugely successful music career, starting a band called “Slam!” (a parody of Wham!). This shot him to fame at once. At the end of the 1970s, the band split up and he started a solo career. His first solo album, “Firelight”, went platinum and he won several awards and released the single “Something for the Children” at Christmas time in 1986, with all funds given to charity. Cray campaigned for several issues, including saving the rainforests, ending world debt and banning animal testing. His tireless work for charity earned him a knighthood in 1990. The rich superstar then branched into hotels, television, and even started developing “Gameslayer”, the most advanced and realistic games console of its time.

However, despite his charitable work and beliefs, Cray had a darker and more sinister side to him; in order to fulfill some of his charitable notions, such as his campaign against animal testing, he ordered the assassinations of many people responsible for the practises he was campaigning against. This went unnoticed until he ordered an assassination on Edward Pleasure- father of Sabina Pleasure- a journalist who was threatening to expose Cray's plan. He also arranges the killing of a journalist who puts him on the spot by asking him awkward questions regarding video game violence in "Gameslayer".

Cray was planning a nuclear attack to annihilate major drug-producing parts of the world, killing millions in the process. Under the cover of “Gameslayer” he devised a way of hijacking Air Force One using a flash drive and launching the USA's supply of nuclear missiles. However, Alex has trouble convincing Alan Blunt that the charitable Damian Cray is planning to destroy half of the world, forcing Alex to investigate the situation himself.

In Air Force One, Cray kills Yassen Gregorovich. Alex manages to prevent the nuclear strike and, with Sabina, pushes Cray out of the plane and into one of the turbines, killing him instantly and forcing the pilot (Henryk) to make a crash landing.

Cray is described as very short, with dyed jet-black hair. He has a round face, green eyes, with a small nose positioned "almost unnaturally in the centre of his face". It is mentioned that Cray has probably had plastic surgery.