Ex-Prince Andrew Arrested (On His Birthday)
- Thread starter CallMeKate
- Start date
Well said, completely agree.
Wombat
Member
- Location
- Wollongong
Why do you think that would be the case? The situation at the moment is that the effective head of state is the Governor General. he is not elected but selected by the parliament. If the monarchy in the UK disappears why could that process not continue? There is no need for even a name change. (same applies to the state governors)
References to the monarch would have to be erased from the Constitution but I don't see that it would make any practical difference if Australia became a republic, things could continue exactly as they are now. Personally I think we lost any chance of becoming a republic in the 1980s with the visit of Princess Diana. The Dismissal is long forgotten and most people don't care either way - she'll be right.
Personally I don't think the monarchy will disappear as long the bunch of no hopers are allowed to ponce around in random military uniforms displaying meaningless, unearned medals that their mum gave them.
I can't see the British people ever waking up to what an entitled, useless lot they are bludging off the public purse.
Last edited:
hollydolly
SF VIP
- Location
- London England
No you're wrong... we're very aware of it, there's just nothing we can do....we're stuck with it..Why do you think that would be the case? The situation at the moment is that the effective head of state is the Governor General. he is not elected but selected by the parliament. If the monarchy in the UK disappears why could that process not continue? There is no need for even a name change. (same applies to the state governors)
References to the monarch would have to be erased from the Constitution but I don't see that it would make any practical difference if Australia became a republic, things could continue exactly as they are now. Personally I think we lost any chance of becoming a republic in the 1980s with the visit of Princess Diana. The Dismissal is long forgotten and most people don't care either way - she'll be right.
Personally I don't think the monarchy will disappear as long the bunch of no hopers are allowed to ponce around in random military uniforms displaying meaningless, unearned medals that their mum gave them.
I can't see the British people ever waking up to what an entitled, useless lot they are bludging off the public purse.
BTW, Fergie looks horrible for 66. Must be all that partying that caught up to her.
hollydolly
SF VIP
- Location
- London England
yep and ski-ing ( loads) and sunbathing ... in hot climes ....spends her whole life partying, and vacationing ...
Being Mummy's favourite may have contributed to the current scenario.
'She left a ticking timebomb': Elizabeth, Andrew and the monarchy's future
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was the Queen's rumoured favourite. Did she do too much to protect him?
By Rebecca Armitage9h ago9 hours ago
Queen Elizabeth II had a special bond with her second-born son, now known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. (Getty: Mark Cuthbert)
Link copied
It was 2019 and Queen Elizabeth II's rumoured favourite was in trouble.
Then known as Prince Andrew, the monarch's second-born son had just stepped back from public life after a cataclysmic interview with the BBC failed to address concerns about his association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The former prince has always claimed that his friendship with Epstein may have been ill-advised and was certainly deeply regretted, but never involved any criminal activity.
And yet, the interview, in which he made bizarre claims about his inability to sweat and failed to show any sympathy for Epstein's victims, was deemed so damaging to the monarchy that he had no choice but to give up his status as a senior working royal.
It was a spectacular fall from grace for a man known to be the Queen's "golden boy".
Two days later though, conveniently placed photographers captured the Queen in a long coat and hood riding her horse around the grounds of Windsor Castle with Andrew by her side.
"There had been a cloud hanging over his reputation, and the Queen was a realist. She essentially fired her own son," Gyles Brandreth wrote in his biography, Elizabeth: An Intimate Portrait.
The photo became emblematic of the Queen's handling of the man now known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.
As her son, he was the undisputed favourite. But as a member of "The Firm", he became an increasing threat to the institution she led.
"She just had this blind spot with her son," royal biographer Andrew Lownie said.
"It was ridiculous. He would be quoted as doing something with Epstein, and she would give him another honour or ask him to sit beside her at church."
Now, just over three years since Elizabeth died, her son King Charles III is grappling with the monarchy's greatest crisis since the abdication of Edward VIII.
Mountbatten-Windsor is facing an investigation into allegations of misconduct in public office.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was released from police custody without being charged, but remains under investigation. (Reuters: Phil Noble)
It's the first time in 377 years that a royal has been arrested.
A picture of the King's brother looking shell-shocked and terrified in the back of a car will likely be a defining image of the House of Windsor. And one British newspaper has asked of both Charles and his late mother: "What did they know?"
It will be up to Charles to shepherd his family's institution through its darkest hour. If he fails, a 1,000-year-old institution could die with him.
But could his own mother have done more to snuff out this crisis before he inherited it?
Andrew's 'indulged' youth
King Charles once described his mother as a "remote and glamorous figure who came to kiss you goodnight, smelling of lavender and dressed for dinner".The young queen, who acceded to the throne at the age of 25, was said to be busy learning her new constitutional duties while preparing Charles to one day succeed her.
But by the time Andrew was born in 1960, Elizabeth had reigned for eight years and was growing more confident in her role.
"With no small irony, insiders say he owes his self-assurance to the mothering of the Queen, who indulged her second son as she never did her older children and continues to shield him," Catherine Mayer wrote about Andrew in her 2015 biography Charles, The Heart of a King.
Extroverted and sporty, where his older brother was studious and shy, Andrew grew up to be a Royal Navy helicopter pilot in the Falklands War.
Queen Elizabeth greeted Andrew when he returned from the Falklands War in 1982. (Getty)
At the conflict's end, the Queen greeted her 22-year-old son with a red rose, which he promptly placed between his teeth.
"He came back a hero and was very much the golden boy of the royal family," royal commentator Katie Nicholl said.
The young prince gave the monarchy a much-needed injection of youthful glamour.
"Having arrived as a royal celebrity in his own right, Andrew's image evolved, and it wasn't long before he was presented as a 'playboy prince' fond of parties and female company," historian Ed Owens said.
But with the adulation of a grateful kingdom and the unyielding favour of the monarch, some commentators say Andrew became overly indulged.
"It meant that all the way through his life, he was protected," biographer Andrew Lownie told Peter FitzSimons last year.
Commentators say Queen Elizabeth had more time to spend with her younger children, including Andrew. (Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty)
"He was told he was wonderful. Anyone who didn't say that didn't progress in their career.
"So he was over-promoted in the navy, and everyone just indulged him. And he just realised — he could do exactly what he wanted, from when he was five years old to now."
Andrew's plum role defined by scandal
The problem with being the spare is that your sole purpose in life is to exist in the event of an emergency.While then-Prince Charles had a lengthy but purposeful wait to fulfil his destiny, his brother Andrew found himself at something of a loose end.
The births of Princes William and Harry pushed him further down the line of succession. He retired from the Royal Navy in 2001. And his status as the dashing playboy began to slip away with his youth.
Andrew was made the UK's special representative for trade and investment and travelled the world for a decade. (PA Images/Getty: John Stillwell)
Soon after he left the navy, Andrew was given the plum position of UK special representative for international trade and investment, which allowed him to travel the world and rub shoulders with senior government and business contacts.
Royal author Robert Jobson says the Queen approved giving Andrew the job over the objections of Charles because she "indulged him".
"She was surrounded by people whose job it was to protect her, including a prime minister who appointed him as a trade envoy," he told PEOPLE magazine.
'[Charles] thought he wasn't qualified for it and, with him just out of the navy, he should learn the job first. But he was ignored."
Andrew proved to be a controversial trade envoy during his decade in the job.
He earned the nickname "Air Miles Andy" from the tabloids for his frequent taxpayer-funded travel. He was criticised for lunching at Buckingham Palace with a member of Tunisia's dictatorial regime. He holidayed with a convicted Libyan gun smuggler. And ambassadors described his conduct as "cocky … verging on rude".
It was during his time as trade envoy that rumours began to spread about Andrew's friendship with Epstein and his accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell.
"Epstein played Andrew," Lownie wrote in his biography.
"The prince was a useful idiot who gave him respectability, access to political leaders and business opportunities. He found him easy to exploit."
While Andrew has long denied any knowledge of or participation in the sex-trafficking ring run by Epstein and Maxwell, it now appears that his communications with Epstein as trade envoy led to his arrest this week.
Police are yet to go into detail about why they're investigating the former prince for misconduct in public office, but in a glut of files released by the US Department of Justice, several emails appear to show that Andrew forwarded on sensitive materials to Epstein in 2010.
Being named in the Epstein files is not an indication of misconduct, but trade envoys are required to maintain confidentiality over sensitive, commercial or political information related to their work.
As allegations against her son mounted, Queen Elizabeth stuck by him publicly. (UK Press via Getty Images: Mark Cuthbert)
After a decade in the job, UK politicians were openly calling for the Queen's son to be removed from the post, with one going so far as to describe him as a "national embarrassment" for his questionable business dealings and his friendship with a known sex offender.
"I am sure there are some countries in the world where having a visiting royal makes a difference, it makes it possible to have some meetings which wouldn't otherwise be possible," Chris Bryant, a Labour MP and former foreign minister said.
"My worry is that, sometimes when he goes on these trips, I am not sure whether he is helping us out or he is just helping himself."
In 2011, Andrew resigned as trade envoy.
While he was out of a job, Andrew retained his status as the Queen's rumoured favourite — until a looming scandal forced her hand.
Epstein connection catches up with him
After stepping down from his post, Andrew became a full-time working royal and was a frequent visitor to the Queen."Whenever she hears that Andrew is in Buckingham Palace, she'll send him a handwritten note, and he always goes to see her," a former palace aide told Daily Mail reporters Geoffrey Levy and Richard Kay in 2011.
But the controversies and damaging headlines continued.
He was slammed in 2016 for ramming his Range Rover through some closed gates in Windsor Great Park when they didn't open in time.
Then a young woman called Virginia Giuffre made a bombshell allegation. She claimed that Epstein trafficked her to the then-prince when she was only 17 years old.
Andrew denies ever having met Giuffre, even though a widely-circulated photograph shows him with his arm around her waist in Maxwell's apartment while the sex trafficker watches on.
"Nobody can prove whether or not that photograph has been doctored, but I don't recollect that photograph ever being taken," he told the BBC.
But in 2019, when Epstein died by suicide in a New York prison cell, Andrew's past could no longer be ignored.
Andrew's interview on the BBC in November 2019 was so disastrous that he stepped back as a working royal days later. (BBC)
He invited the BBC's Newsnight program to interview him in the grand rooms of Buckingham Palace.
What followed was one of the most excruciating interviews in television history.
When asked what led him to stay at Epstein's New York mansion after the disgraced financier was released from prison following his conviction for soliciting underage girls for sex, Andrew said "it was a convenient place to stay," and that he thought ending their friendship in person was "the honourable and right thing to do".
The public was outraged, and the Queen found herself scrambling to appease her own subjects.
Andrew announced that he would voluntarily step back as a senior working royal to avoid any further "major disruption to my family's work".
Yet, the royal family still claimed him as one of their own.
"He remains a member of the royal family, and as a Royal Colonel and a war veteran, he will still take part in Trooping the Colour and Remembrance Sunday," a palace aide told Vanity Fair at the time.
In 2022, he reached an undisclosed out-of-court settlement with Giuffre to resolve her US civil sex abuse lawsuit against him. The settlement deal, rumoured to be about £12 million, did not include an admission of guilt.
Depending on whose version of events you believe, the Queen either paid the settlement, or, along with her husband and heir, lent him the amount needed with the understanding it would one day be paid back.
The Queen's final year was defined by a contradictory strategy when it came to her favourite son.
After the settlement, she removed his charitable patronages and banned him from using the title of His Royal Highness.
But she also hand-picked him to escort her into church for a memorial service for her late husband, Prince Philip, in full view of the world's press.
"It didn't happen by chance," former BBC royal correspondent Peter Hunt said.
Even after he stepped back as a working royal, then-Prince Andrew often appeared in public with the family. (WPA Pool/Getty Images: Richard Pohle )
"It's one thing to accept that he should attend his father's memorial service; it's quite another thing to then give him quite a prominent role."
The Queen's death in September 2022 saw Andrew lose not only his mother and his boss, but his greatest advocate.
"Mummy, your love for a son, your compassion, your care, your confidence, I will treasure forever," he said in his tribute.
As Charles finally acceded to the throne, royal watchers expected that the new king would take a hard-line approach to Andrew.
But like his mother, Charles found himself unable to act decisively — until his brother's legal woes threatened to bring down all of them.
Andrew's downfall: very slowly, and then all at once
It's no secret that Andrew and Charles are not especially close.There is a significant age gap between them; they are very different men, and have suffered the inevitable tensions that always seem to divide male heirs and spares in the House of Windsor.
But as king, Charles adopted a similar strategy to his mother — occasionally slapping Andrew's wrist, while largely keeping him in the royal fold.
Charles removed his taxpayer-funded armed police detail in 2022, but paid for private security guards to protect him.
Rumours spread that Charles was determined to force his brother from Royal Lodge, a grand 30-room mansion in Windsor that Andrew leased for peppercorn rent on a 75-year lease.
Andrew's appearance at the requiem mass for the Duchess of Kent in September 2025 raised eyebrows. (Reuters: Toby Melville)
But Andrew still appeared shoulder-to-shoulder with his relatives in public, he was allowed to adopt his late mother's corgis, and he was permitted to wear the ornate Garter Robes to his brother's coronation.
Sources close to Prince William allege that in 2023, his father ordered him to drive his uncle to church at Balmoral while photographers snapped away — a powerful visual symbol that was "more than [Andrew] could have wished for".
Perhaps this uneasy arrangement would have persisted for years to come.
Virginia Roberts Giuffre, one of the most prominent survivors of Jeffrey Epstein's sexual abuse, died in 2025. (Reuters: Shannon Stapleton)
But in 2025, Virginia Giuffre died by suicide. She was just 41.
If you or anyone you know needs help:
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The book made for devastating reading. In it, Giuffre claimed to have been a vulnerable teenage girl who found herself ensnared in Epstein and Maxwell's web, before she was trafficked to the then-prince.
Days later, British newspapers published an email that Andrew allegedly sent to Epstein in 2011, in which he said: "I'm just as concerned for you! Don't worry about me!"
The next day, Andrew announced that he would voluntarily relinquish his honours and avoid family events, though he would retain the title of "prince".
The palace seemed to think this symbolic manoeuvre would be enough to satisfy an increasingly outraged public, but two weeks later, Charles was forced to move further and strip him of his remaining titles.
After a protracted negotiation to evict him from Royal Lodge and an incident in which Andrew merrily waved at passers-by in Windsor, Charles responded by exiling him to Norfolk.
But it was not until Friday, when Andrew was arrested, that the King cut all ties with his brother.
In his statement following the arrest, King Charles referred to him as "Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor" and pointedly separated him from the herd by declaring that "my family and I will continue in our duty and service to you all".
While his brother was being questioned by police, the King kept his schedule and went to London Fashion Week.
Can the monarchy survive?
Supporters of the monarchy have long claimed that the institution's survival depends on not letting "daylight upon the magic".On the day of his brother's arrest, King Charles kept his schedule and appeared at London Fashion Week. (Getty: Karwai Tang)
But that veil of mystery was never meant to obscure allegations of misconduct and assault, nor was it meant to come at the expense of abuse victims.
This scandal arrives at a precarious moment for the monarchy.
In 1983, 86 per cent of the British population said it was "very important" or "quite important" to continue having a monarchy, according to polling by the National Centre for Social Research.
In 2025, that sentiment dropped to just 51 per cent, with the steepest decline occurring in the years after Queen Elizabeth died.
But as her successor tries to keep this ancient institution going, some royal watchers say it was her handling of Andrew's scandals that led to this moment.
"There's a school of thought that she perhaps should have done more sooner," ITV's royal editor Chris Ship said.
Very interesting piece, Rakaia! I've always enjoyed the British monarchy as living monuments of history. I knew from watching The Crown, that Edward was the favorite son, he was confident, brash, funny, with a bit of swagger, like her husband. King Charles' quiet, intellectual qualities were underappreciated and not what she saw as manly. What a shame.
I liked and admired the late Queen. I'm glad this latest didn't happen until after her death.
I liked and admired the late Queen. I'm glad this latest didn't happen until after her death.
Messy
New Member
That was Andrew? I can see why he was her favorite. What a pity that she spoiled him.
Last edited:
BJintheUK
Member
- Location
- Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, UK
As far as I'm aware, Andrew and Charles share a mother but not a father. From what I've read, Prince Phillip fathered Charles and Ann, but Andrew was fathered by someone else, as was Edward. I've also seen a photo taken at Andrew's Christening, where there's no sign of Phillip, as he wasn't invited!
hearlady
Homebody
- Location
- N Carolina
All I can say is Wow! The history of the Royal Family is incredible right up to the minute.Being Mummy's favourite may have contributed to the current scenario.
'She left a ticking timebomb': Elizabeth, Andrew and the monarchy's future
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was the Queen's rumoured favourite. Did she do too much to protect him?
By Rebecca Armitage
9h ago9 hours ago
Queen Elizabeth II had a special bond with her second-born son, now known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. (Getty: Mark Cuthbert)
Link copied
It was 2019 and Queen Elizabeth II's rumoured favourite was in trouble.
Then known as Prince Andrew, the monarch's second-born son had just stepped back from public life after a cataclysmic interview with the BBC failed to address concerns about his association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The former prince has always claimed that his friendship with Epstein may have been ill-advised and was certainly deeply regretted, but never involved any criminal activity.
And yet, the interview, in which he made bizarre claims about his inability to sweat and failed to show any sympathy for Epstein's victims, was deemed so damaging to the monarchy that he had no choice but to give up his status as a senior working royal.
It was a spectacular fall from grace for a man known to be the Queen's "golden boy".
Two days later though, conveniently placed photographers captured the Queen in a long coat and hood riding her horse around the grounds of Windsor Castle with Andrew by her side.
"There had been a cloud hanging over his reputation, and the Queen was a realist. She essentially fired her own son," Gyles Brandreth wrote in his biography, Elizabeth: An Intimate Portrait.
The photo became emblematic of the Queen's handling of the man now known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.
As her son, he was the undisputed favourite. But as a member of "The Firm", he became an increasing threat to the institution she led.
"She just had this blind spot with her son," royal biographer Andrew Lownie said.
"It was ridiculous. He would be quoted as doing something with Epstein, and she would give him another honour or ask him to sit beside her at church."
Now, just over three years since Elizabeth died, her son King Charles III is grappling with the monarchy's greatest crisis since the abdication of Edward VIII.
Mountbatten-Windsor is facing an investigation into allegations of misconduct in public office.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor was released from police custody without being charged, but remains under investigation. (Reuters: Phil Noble)
It's the first time in 377 years that a royal has been arrested.
A picture of the King's brother looking shell-shocked and terrified in the back of a car will likely be a defining image of the House of Windsor. And one British newspaper has asked of both Charles and his late mother: "What did they know?"
It will be up to Charles to shepherd his family's institution through its darkest hour. If he fails, a 1,000-year-old institution could die with him.
But could his own mother have done more to snuff out this crisis before he inherited it?
Andrew's 'indulged' youth
King Charles once described his mother as a "remote and glamorous figure who came to kiss you goodnight, smelling of lavender and dressed for dinner".
The young queen, who acceded to the throne at the age of 25, was said to be busy learning her new constitutional duties while preparing Charles to one day succeed her.
But by the time Andrew was born in 1960, Elizabeth had reigned for eight years and was growing more confident in her role.
"With no small irony, insiders say he owes his self-assurance to the mothering of the Queen, who indulged her second son as she never did her older children and continues to shield him," Catherine Mayer wrote about Andrew in her 2015 biography Charles, The Heart of a King.
Extroverted and sporty, where his older brother was studious and shy, Andrew grew up to be a Royal Navy helicopter pilot in the Falklands War.
Queen Elizabeth greeted Andrew when he returned from the Falklands War in 1982. (Getty)
At the conflict's end, the Queen greeted her 22-year-old son with a red rose, which he promptly placed between his teeth.
"He came back a hero and was very much the golden boy of the royal family," royal commentator Katie Nicholl said.
The young prince gave the monarchy a much-needed injection of youthful glamour.
"Having arrived as a royal celebrity in his own right, Andrew's image evolved, and it wasn't long before he was presented as a 'playboy prince' fond of parties and female company," historian Ed Owens said.
But with the adulation of a grateful kingdom and the unyielding favour of the monarch, some commentators say Andrew became overly indulged.
"It meant that all the way through his life, he was protected," biographer Andrew Lownie told Peter FitzSimons last year.
Commentators say Queen Elizabeth had more time to spend with her younger children, including Andrew. (Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty)
"He was told he was wonderful. Anyone who didn't say that didn't progress in their career.
"So he was over-promoted in the navy, and everyone just indulged him. And he just realised — he could do exactly what he wanted, from when he was five years old to now."
Andrew's plum role defined by scandal
The problem with being the spare is that your sole purpose in life is to exist in the event of an emergency.
While then-Prince Charles had a lengthy but purposeful wait to fulfil his destiny, his brother Andrew found himself at something of a loose end.
The births of Princes William and Harry pushed him further down the line of succession. He retired from the Royal Navy in 2001. And his status as the dashing playboy began to slip away with his youth.
Andrew was made the UK's special representative for trade and investment and travelled the world for a decade. (PA Images/Getty: John Stillwell)
Soon after he left the navy, Andrew was given the plum position of UK special representative for international trade and investment, which allowed him to travel the world and rub shoulders with senior government and business contacts.
Royal author Robert Jobson says the Queen approved giving Andrew the job over the objections of Charles because she "indulged him".
"She was surrounded by people whose job it was to protect her, including a prime minister who appointed him as a trade envoy," he told PEOPLE magazine.
'[Charles] thought he wasn't qualified for it and, with him just out of the navy, he should learn the job first. But he was ignored."
Andrew proved to be a controversial trade envoy during his decade in the job.
He earned the nickname "Air Miles Andy" from the tabloids for his frequent taxpayer-funded travel. He was criticised for lunching at Buckingham Palace with a member of Tunisia's dictatorial regime. He holidayed with a convicted Libyan gun smuggler. And ambassadors described his conduct as "cocky … verging on rude".
It was during his time as trade envoy that rumours began to spread about Andrew's friendship with Epstein and his accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell.
"Epstein played Andrew," Lownie wrote in his biography.
"The prince was a useful idiot who gave him respectability, access to political leaders and business opportunities. He found him easy to exploit."
While Andrew has long denied any knowledge of or participation in the sex-trafficking ring run by Epstein and Maxwell, it now appears that his communications with Epstein as trade envoy led to his arrest this week.
Police are yet to go into detail about why they're investigating the former prince for misconduct in public office, but in a glut of files released by the US Department of Justice, several emails appear to show that Andrew forwarded on sensitive materials to Epstein in 2010.
Being named in the Epstein files is not an indication of misconduct, but trade envoys are required to maintain confidentiality over sensitive, commercial or political information related to their work.
As allegations against her son mounted, Queen Elizabeth stuck by him publicly. (UK Press via Getty Images: Mark Cuthbert)
After a decade in the job, UK politicians were openly calling for the Queen's son to be removed from the post, with one going so far as to describe him as a "national embarrassment" for his questionable business dealings and his friendship with a known sex offender.
"I am sure there are some countries in the world where having a visiting royal makes a difference, it makes it possible to have some meetings which wouldn't otherwise be possible," Chris Bryant, a Labour MP and former foreign minister said.
"My worry is that, sometimes when he goes on these trips, I am not sure whether he is helping us out or he is just helping himself."
In 2011, Andrew resigned as trade envoy.
While he was out of a job, Andrew retained his status as the Queen's rumoured favourite — until a looming scandal forced her hand.
Epstein connection catches up with him
After stepping down from his post, Andrew became a full-time working royal and was a frequent visitor to the Queen.
"Whenever she hears that Andrew is in Buckingham Palace, she'll send him a handwritten note, and he always goes to see her," a former palace aide told Daily Mail reporters Geoffrey Levy and Richard Kay in 2011.
But the controversies and damaging headlines continued.
He was slammed in 2016 for ramming his Range Rover through some closed gates in Windsor Great Park when they didn't open in time.
Then a young woman called Virginia Giuffre made a bombshell allegation. She claimed that Epstein trafficked her to the then-prince when she was only 17 years old.
Andrew denies ever having met Giuffre, even though a widely-circulated photograph shows him with his arm around her waist in Maxwell's apartment while the sex trafficker watches on.
"Nobody can prove whether or not that photograph has been doctored, but I don't recollect that photograph ever being taken," he told the BBC.
But in 2019, when Epstein died by suicide in a New York prison cell, Andrew's past could no longer be ignored.
Andrew's interview on the BBC in November 2019 was so disastrous that he stepped back as a working royal days later. (BBC)
He invited the BBC's Newsnight program to interview him in the grand rooms of Buckingham Palace.
What followed was one of the most excruciating interviews in television history.
When asked what led him to stay at Epstein's New York mansion after the disgraced financier was released from prison following his conviction for soliciting underage girls for sex, Andrew said "it was a convenient place to stay," and that he thought ending their friendship in person was "the honourable and right thing to do".
The public was outraged, and the Queen found herself scrambling to appease her own subjects.
Andrew announced that he would voluntarily step back as a senior working royal to avoid any further "major disruption to my family's work".
Yet, the royal family still claimed him as one of their own.
"He remains a member of the royal family, and as a Royal Colonel and a war veteran, he will still take part in Trooping the Colour and Remembrance Sunday," a palace aide told Vanity Fair at the time.
In 2022, he reached an undisclosed out-of-court settlement with Giuffre to resolve her US civil sex abuse lawsuit against him. The settlement deal, rumoured to be about £12 million, did not include an admission of guilt.
Depending on whose version of events you believe, the Queen either paid the settlement, or, along with her husband and heir, lent him the amount needed with the understanding it would one day be paid back.
The Queen's final year was defined by a contradictory strategy when it came to her favourite son.
After the settlement, she removed his charitable patronages and banned him from using the title of His Royal Highness.
But she also hand-picked him to escort her into church for a memorial service for her late husband, Prince Philip, in full view of the world's press.
"It didn't happen by chance," former BBC royal correspondent Peter Hunt said.
Even after he stepped back as a working royal, then-Prince Andrew often appeared in public with the family. (WPA Pool/Getty Images: Richard Pohle )
"It's one thing to accept that he should attend his father's memorial service; it's quite another thing to then give him quite a prominent role."
The Queen's death in September 2022 saw Andrew lose not only his mother and his boss, but his greatest advocate.
"Mummy, your love for a son, your compassion, your care, your confidence, I will treasure forever," he said in his tribute.
As Charles finally acceded to the throne, royal watchers expected that the new king would take a hard-line approach to Andrew.
But like his mother, Charles found himself unable to act decisively — until his brother's legal woes threatened to bring down all of them.
Andrew's downfall: very slowly, and then all at once
It's no secret that Andrew and Charles are not especially close.
There is a significant age gap between them; they are very different men, and have suffered the inevitable tensions that always seem to divide male heirs and spares in the House of Windsor.
But as king, Charles adopted a similar strategy to his mother — occasionally slapping Andrew's wrist, while largely keeping him in the royal fold.
Charles removed his taxpayer-funded armed police detail in 2022, but paid for private security guards to protect him.
Rumours spread that Charles was determined to force his brother from Royal Lodge, a grand 30-room mansion in Windsor that Andrew leased for peppercorn rent on a 75-year lease.
Andrew's appearance at the requiem mass for the Duchess of Kent in September 2025 raised eyebrows. (Reuters: Toby Melville)
But Andrew still appeared shoulder-to-shoulder with his relatives in public, he was allowed to adopt his late mother's corgis, and he was permitted to wear the ornate Garter Robes to his brother's coronation.
Sources close to Prince William allege that in 2023, his father ordered him to drive his uncle to church at Balmoral while photographers snapped away — a powerful visual symbol that was "more than [Andrew] could have wished for".
Perhaps this uneasy arrangement would have persisted for years to come.
Virginia Roberts Giuffre, one of the most prominent survivors of Jeffrey Epstein's sexual abuse, died in 2025. (Reuters: Shannon Stapleton)
But in 2025, Virginia Giuffre died by suicide. She was just 41.
If you or anyone you know needs help:
Before her death, she had written a memoir and her family decided to honour her plans to publish it.
- Lifeline on 13 11 14
- Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander crisis support line 13YARN on 13 92 76
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The book made for devastating reading. In it, Giuffre claimed to have been a vulnerable teenage girl who found herself ensnared in Epstein and Maxwell's web, before she was trafficked to the then-prince.
Days later, British newspapers published an email that Andrew allegedly sent to Epstein in 2011, in which he said: "I'm just as concerned for you! Don't worry about me!"
The next day, Andrew announced that he would voluntarily relinquish his honours and avoid family events, though he would retain the title of "prince".
The palace seemed to think this symbolic manoeuvre would be enough to satisfy an increasingly outraged public, but two weeks later, Charles was forced to move further and strip him of his remaining titles.
After a protracted negotiation to evict him from Royal Lodge and an incident in which Andrew merrily waved at passers-by in Windsor, Charles responded by exiling him to Norfolk.
But it was not until Friday, when Andrew was arrested, that the King cut all ties with his brother.
In his statement following the arrest, King Charles referred to him as "Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor" and pointedly separated him from the herd by declaring that "my family and I will continue in our duty and service to you all".
While his brother was being questioned by police, the King kept his schedule and went to London Fashion Week.
Can the monarchy survive?
Supporters of the monarchy have long claimed that the institution's survival depends on not letting "daylight upon the magic".
On the day of his brother's arrest, King Charles kept his schedule and appeared at London Fashion Week. (Getty: Karwai Tang)
But that veil of mystery was never meant to obscure allegations of misconduct and assault, nor was it meant to come at the expense of abuse victims.
This scandal arrives at a precarious moment for the monarchy.
In 1983, 86 per cent of the British population said it was "very important" or "quite important" to continue having a monarchy, according to polling by the National Centre for Social Research.
In 2025, that sentiment dropped to just 51 per cent, with the steepest decline occurring in the years after Queen Elizabeth died.
But as her successor tries to keep this ancient institution going, some royal watchers say it was her handling of Andrew's scandals that led to this moment.
"There's a school of thought that she perhaps should have done more sooner," ITV's royal editor Chris Ship said.
The scandals that keep on giving.
You are saying the Queen had a secret affair and someone else was the father of her 2 youngest children????
I am no royalist but even I think that is a ridiculous assertion.
And a 10 second google found christening photos of Andrew with Prince Phillip in them.
CallMeKate
Well-known Member
- Location
- Mid-Atlantic US
I recently saw a pic of Edward and thought how much he looks like his father in younger years. I've never even heard a rumor that Philip wasn't his father, but genes don't lie.
Not for one minute would I believe Queen Elizabeth II had an affair. She took her royal duties as Queen and her religious duties as Defender of the Faith very seriously.
If you want sex scandals, questionable parentage, and numerous affairs you'll need Diana.
If you want sex scandals, questionable parentage, and numerous affairs you'll need Diana.
Trish
VIP OAP
Where did you read that @BJintheUK ? I have never read anything which suggests that to be the case. I was so surprised that I Googled:
Yes, Prince Philip was the father of all four of Queen Elizabeth II's children: King Charles III, Princess Anne, Prince Andrew, and Prince Edward. The couple were married in 1947 and had all four children together throughout their 73-year marriage.
Key details regarding their children:
There is no reputable evidence or credible historical claim to suggest otherwise, with all four recognized officially as the children of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip.
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hollydolly
SF VIP
- Location
- London England
the crown wasn't historically correct...I couldn't bare to watch it, it was so bad...
hollydolly
SF VIP
- Location
- London England
No not Edward he is the living image of his father... but there always has been controversy over Andrew, you're correct... it has long been said that he was fathered by the 7th Earl of Carnarvon... the Queen's racing maager..
There was huge gap between the births of Anne, and Andrew.. and it has been written that there was a problem in the Royal Marriage, that Elizabeth wanted more children, but Philip was not interested and was playing away.. the latter has never been undisputed..
It was only after Andrew was born 8 years after Anne. that the marriage seemed to get back on track and a few years later Edward was born..
The resemblance between Lord Carnarvon (AKA Lord Porchester) and Andrew is there.. and Prince Philip never addressed the elephant in the room ...whenever the topic was raised
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hollydolly
SF VIP
- Location
- London England
...or Princess Margaret.... and Sarah Ferguson....
hollydolly
SF VIP
- Location
- London England
Edward was not the favoured son... that has always been Andrew!!
BJintheUK
Member
- Location
- Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, UK
Interesting reactions to what I've read on other forums and posted here.
I initially found it impossible to believe the Queen had an affair as well, but the person who put up the original post then backed it up with several photos, one of which was the photo of the Christening which didn't show Philip at all.
Since then I've been rather wary of anything I read about the royal family, and I am now no longer the staunch royalist I was when Elizabeth 2nd was alive. As to whether she did in fact have an affair with Lord Porchester, with Andrew being the issue, I'm still in two minds, but I can't personally see any family likeness between Andrew and Philip, yet I can see a bit of a likeness between Andrew and Porchester.
I initially found it impossible to believe the Queen had an affair as well, but the person who put up the original post then backed it up with several photos, one of which was the photo of the Christening which didn't show Philip at all.
Since then I've been rather wary of anything I read about the royal family, and I am now no longer the staunch royalist I was when Elizabeth 2nd was alive. As to whether she did in fact have an affair with Lord Porchester, with Andrew being the issue, I'm still in two minds, but I can't personally see any family likeness between Andrew and Philip, yet I can see a bit of a likeness between Andrew and Porchester.
hollydolly
SF VIP
- Location
- London England
Nothing to do with posts original or otherwise this has been a common gossip inside the RF and all their connections.. as well as the public since Andrew was small....
Andrew has absolutely no resemblance to Philip... Charles looks like the Queens Uncle who abdicated the throne .. but sometimes in profile we can see philip in him... Edward as has been said before resembles Philip greatly... but there is nothing about Andrew and Philip..resembling each other in any way... but there is a striking resemblance between Andrew and Lord Porchester
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I always took it with a big grain of salt and read the comparison with reality that was always published the next day.
The last two season of The Crown were the worst because they made it so much about Diana and continued the myths about her that the press had always kept so as not to tarnish their golden goose. Nobody's face ever sold newspapers and magazines like Diana's.
hollydolly
SF VIP
- Location
- London England
True... and unfortunately she was not the golden girl everyone thought she was ....
