London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Oct 02, 2025

Prince Andrew: I let the side down with Epstein stay

The Duke of York speaks to the BBC for the first time about his links to convicted US sex offender Jeffery Epstein

Answering questions about his links to Epstein for the first time, Prince Andrew said his stay was not "becoming of a member of the Royal Family".

The prince spoke to BBC Newsnight's Emily Maitlis in an interview recorded at Buckingham Palace on Thursday.

Prince Andrew has been facing questions for several months over his ties to Epstein, a 66-year-old American financier who took his own life while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges.

In 2010, the prince was photographed walking with Epstein in New York's Central Park - two years after Epstein's first conviction for soliciting a minor for prostitution.

Footage published by the Mail on Sunday showed the prince in Epstein's Manhattan mansion around the same time.

Addressing his decision to stay with Epstein following the American's first conviction, Prince Andrew said: "That's the bit that… as it were, I kick myself for on a daily basis because it was not something that was becoming of a member of the Royal Family and we try and uphold the highest standards and practices and I let the side down, simple as that."

In 2015, Prince Andrew was named in court papers as part of a US civil case against Epstein.

One of Epstein's accusers, Virginia Roberts - now Virginia Giuffre - said she was forced to have sex with the prince three times between 1999 - when she was 17 - and 2002, in London, New York and on a private Caribbean island owned by Epstein.

At the time she was under-age according to Florida state law.

In the BBC interview, Emily Maitlis asks the prince about Ms Giuffre's claims that in 2001, she had dined with him, danced with him at a nightclub, and went on to have sex with him at the house of a friend of the prince in Belgravia, central London.

The prince replied: "I have no recollection of ever meeting this lady, none whatsoever."

When asked once more whether he remembered meeting Ms Giuffre, the prince said: "No."

There is of course a lot more to come - so far we've had two short excerpts from an hour-long interview.

But on the biggest question facing the prince - the allegation that he had sex with the 17-year-old Virginia Roberts, now Giuffre - the categorical denial that some might have expected or hoped for simply isn't there.

Instead the prince says he has "no recollection of ever meeting" Ms Giuffre. It's odd because for years the Palace has issued a straightforward denial that the Prince had any relationship or sexual contact with her.

Now the prince says he simply can't remember.

It's a defence - memorably used by US President Ronald Reagan in the Iran-Contra affair - that's bound to raise some people's suspicions. We will have to wait and see if he is challenged about the photo that shows the Prince with his arm around her bare midriff.

As to staying in Epstein's house after his friend had been convicted of child sex offences, judging by his hesitant response he is horribly embarrassed by the whole thing. He let the side down, he says.

One can only wonder what comes next in this astonishing interview.

Details of Ms Giuffre's claims against the prince were later officially struck from court records when a judge ruled they were unnecessary to the case, saying they were "immaterial and impertinent" to the "central claim".

Separately, a woman called Johanna Sjoberg alleged that the prince touched her breast while they sat on a couch in Epstein's Manhattan apartment in 2001 in documents from a defamation case.

Buckingham Palace has issued strong denials of all allegations against the prince.

And Prince Andrew's ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, wrote on Friday that the prince was a "true [and] real gentleman and is stoically steadfast not only [in] his duty but also his kindness".

In 2015, a statement from the palace said that "any suggestion of impropriety with underage minors" by the prince was "categorically untrue".

The prince first met Epstein in 1999 and they saw each other on several occasions after that.

In 2005, the parents of a 14-year-old girl told police in Florida that Epstein had molested their daughter at his Palm Beach home.

Prosecutors forged a deal with Epstein in 2008, which saw him avoid federal charges.

He instead received an 18-month prison sentence, during which he was able to go on "work release" to his office for 12 hours a day, six days a week. He was released on probation after 13 months.

In a statement released by Buckingham Palace in August, the prince said he was "appalled" by the sex abuse claims surrounding his former friend.

The statement added: "His Royal Highness deplores the exploitation of any human being and the suggestion he would condone, participate in or encourage any such behaviour is abhorrent."

Discussing how the BBC's interview was secured, Emily Maitlis told Newsnight on Friday that talks with the palace had been ongoing for "many months" and had intensified following Epstein's death.

She said the prince had to seek the approval of the Queen and that "she gave sign off either late on Monday or very early on Tuesday".

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
Disney Reinstates ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after Six-Day Suspension over Charlie Kirk Comments
U.S. Prosecutors Move to Break Up Google’s Advertising Monopoly
Nvidia Pledges Up to $100 Billion Investment in OpenAI to Power Massive AI Data Center Build-Out
U.S. Signals ‘Large and Forceful’ Support for Argentina Amid Market Turmoil
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
Vietnam Faces Up to $25 Billion Export Loss as U.S. Tariffs Bite
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Indonesia Court Upholds Military Law Amid Concerns Over Expanded Civilian Role
Larry Ellison, Michael Dell and Rupert Murdoch Join Trump-Backed Bid to Take Over TikTok
Trump and Musk Reunite Publicly for First Time Since Fallout at Kirk Memorial
Vietnam Closes 86 Million Untouched Bank Accounts Over Biometric ID Rules
×