Just as it looked like Prince Andrew had been welcomed back into the royal fold, his scandalous past is set to hit headlines again with the launch of new Netflix film, Scoop which revisits his disastrous 2019 interview with BBC’s Newsnight. But an insider reveals Andrew, 64, is dreading its release and is concerned it will scupper his chances of a comeback, especially after he’s been spotted at public events in the wake of King Charles and the Princess of Wales, Kate’s cancer diagnosis, such as last week’s Easter Sunday service at St George’s chapel with ex wife Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson and his sister Princess Anne.

The source says, “Andrew really felt that he turned the corner, he was getting invited to a lot of royal events again, not just with Sarah but by himself as well. He was starting to feel much more welcome and confident that people had really started to forgive him, especially with the slimmed down monarchy.

“He was quietly starting to believe that there was a path back for him into public service, if not more active involvement inside the family, but this has just set everything back in such a giant way. It has been a real kick in the face.”

Starring Rufus Sewell as Andrew and Gillian Anderson as Emily, the film tracks the inside story to Andrew’s interview with BBC’s Emily Maitlis, where he discussed his relationship with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. 

In the real-life interview, Andrew claimed he had “no recollection” of ever meeting Virginia Guiffre – who has long argued that Epstein made her have “disgusting” sex with the royal three times, starting in 2001 when she was just 17.

He also dismissed some of Guiffre’s allegations by claiming he could not sweat, after she claimed he had been “profusely sweating” during their alleged encounter. Other extraordinary claims that were made by Andrew included that he could not have had sex with Giuffre on the night he was accused of doing so because he had taken his daughters, Princess Beatrice, 35, and Princess Eugenie, 34, to a Pizza Express in Woking.

He settled the case out of court for an an alleged £12m in February 2022, sparing him the humiliation of giving evidence in a trial and protecting the royal family from further reputational damage. Amid the scandal, the Duke was stripped of his military titles and royal patronages as well as the use of the title His Royal Highness.

In the Netflix drama, written by Peter Moffat and also starring Billie Piper, Andrew tells the Newsnight team, “I don’t quite understand why everyone is so obsessed with my friendship with Jeffrey Epstein. I knew Jimmy Savile so much better.”

In another scene, Andrew appears taken aback when Emily arrives at the palace wearing trousers, rather than a dress or a skirt, ahead of the interview. Other scenes show him yelling at a female employee for incorrectly arranging teddy bears and a toy kangaroo on his bed.

The insider says Andrew is fuming with his portrayal.

“They’ve made him look like a total fool, linking him to Jimmy Savile of all people, it’s just so degrading and humiliating but there really is just nothing he can do. Netflix obviously ran this past the lawyers and got it cleared so it’s not like he can have it shut down. 

“He would love to speak up and defend himself but it’s been made very clear to him by royal aides that this would go down like a lead balloon with Charles, William and other senior royals.”
The insider adds that despite Andrew being at family events recently, he will need to take a step back from public events in the coming weeks.

They say “His only choice is to live with this and hope to God it will blow over soon. But it’s not easy, he’s back to shutting himself in the house and hiding out from everyone, except Sarah and the girls. It’s really affected his sleep because he’s in such a horrible state of mind, ranting and raving about how unfair it all is and worrying what people are saying about him now. He can’t believe they can do this and get away with such a terrible thing. 

“He feels like he’s totally being sabotaged, that there are people out there that will never let him move on. He’s convinced there are dark forces of play. He’s obviously worried about what else they’re going to rake over. Just when he’s feeling like he’s started to turn the corner and like he’s being accepted by the public they put this nasty hit piece out. He knows the public is fickle, when they see this, they’re all going to be holding their noses again and going back to feeling very icky about him, right when he’d impressed them and even contemplate a wedding with Sarah.

“He’s not getting any sympathy though. The Royals have absolutely had it up to their necks with Andrew. For him to be whining about how he’s being portrayed when they’ve already got so much on their plates with Charles and Kate being sick, it really is a bit rich. Sarah and the girls are trying their best to reassure him and make him feel a bit better, but he really is inconsolable.” 

The source also explains that Andrew’s ‘humiliating portrayal’ in the drama is not just affecting him, it’s a ‘huge kick in the teeth’ for the family, especially daughters Beatrice and Eugenie.

“Beatrice and Eugenie have stood by their dad through thick and thin, but this whole situation has been an absolute nightmare of epic proportions. They were finally starting to recover and feeling like things had died down and now it’s all kicked off again, it’s a total rollercoaster. It’s just so embarrassing and so upsetting. Right when they thought their dad was out of the woods and people were starting to put things behind them, along comes this awful documentary,” they say.

“They know everybody’s talking about it, it’s this juicy gossip for everyone in Buckingham Palace and everywhere else they go. Their poor mum is doing her best to have a very calm life to support her health after her cancer diagnosis and now this has thrown her for a loop again. And the girls have got loads going on with work and with raising their young kids. They just wish this would all go away, but obviously it’s never going to. They’re not going to turn their backs on their dad but it’s hard to imagine they’re not feeling resentful towards him for bringing on all this stress.”