Prince Andrew is seen arriving for the Queen’s annual Christmas lunch
In what is set to be an awkward family get-together, Prince Andrew has been seen driving himself to Christmas lunch with the Queen and the rest of the royal family.
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Prince Andrew has arrived for Christmas lunch with the Queen after a turbulent few months over his friendship with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
The Duke of York was pictured driving into Buckingham Palace where the royals will celebrate the festive season together.
Among the royals pictured arriving at the palace today was Prince William and his eldest son George.
Kate Middleton, wearing festive red tartan, also seemed to be in good spirits as she arrived with Charlotte, four, in tow – along with Prince Louis in a sweet green Christmas jumper.
The lunch is sure to make an awkward afternoon for the royal family members, with Prince Andrew’s brother Prince Charles said to have had stern words with duke over the scandal.
CANADIAN GROUPS DROP ANDREW
The Prince Andrew High School in Nova Scotia has announced it is opening a consultation on changing its name after complaints from alumni and parents of current students.
Brad McGowan, principal of Prince Andrew High – which was founded in 1960, the year of Andrew’s birth – told CTV News that he has been contacted by a number of people who are “angry” with the school’s name.
He said that a meeting of the school council will take place on January 20.
“What I’m hearing (people) saying is: ‘You’re asking young people to come to a school that carries the name of somebody who possibly has done something to harm young people,”’ he said.
Meanwhile Lakefield College School, a private school which the prince attended for six months in 1978, has already ended his role as honorary chairman of its foundation.
The SickKids Foundation, which funds Canada’s biggest children’s hospital, has also ousted him as royal patron.
Pitch@Palace Canada, a business initiative Andrew established in 2014, will also not be renewed.
Canada’s Rideau Hall Foundation, which sponsored the Pitch@Palace initiative, also announced it will be ending the relationship.
A number of other prestigious Canadian institutions, including the Royal Victoria Yacht Club and Maple Bay Yacht Club, still list Prince Andrew as a patron.
However, he announced last month that he will be stepping down from all 230 of his royal patronages as he takes a ‘step back from public duties’.
ANDREW PUT DAUGHTERS ‘THROUGH HELL’
Prince Andrew put his daughters “through hell” by “hanging around known pedos”, his sex accuser has claimed.
Jeffrey’s Epstein’s former teen sex slave Virginia Roberts sent an unexpected message to Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie on Twitter as the saga around their dad continues to swirl.
Virginia Roberts, now Giuffre, says she was just 17 when Epstein’s alleged pimp and media heiress Ghislaine Maxwell ordered her to have sex with the Duke of York for the first time after an evening at London’s Tramp nightclub.
The Duke of York, 59, has vehemently denied the accusations against him, branding them “false” and “without foundation”.
The Sun reports that in response to an article about Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, Ms Giuffre tweeted: “I bet they’re going through hell, I wouldn’t wish that on anyone, I have no qualms with them. Their father should have thought about that before he decided to hang around known pedos and even participate in their abuse.”
The news comes just a day after The Duke’s scandal nightmare appeared to deepen with allegations from a second victim threatening to become public in the New Year.
The claim, from another woman allegedly abused by paedophile tycoon Jeffrey Epstein, is being investigated by lawyers.
If they find her account credible and decide to represent her, they are threatening to go public at a press conference next month. A source said: “The claims will be thoroughly investigated.”
The Duke, 59, has been forced to withdraw from public life over his links to Epstein, who was found dead in his jail cell in August.
Andrew has vehemently denied he slept with teenager Virginia Roberts, now Giuffre.
His second accuser has contacted lawyers for Epstein’s victims claiming she also had sex with Prince Andrew although was not said to have alleged she was coerced.
Lawyers will question the woman in an in-depth phone call over the next few weeks and will try to corroborate her story with other sources.
The source added: “In January, if the lawyer believes her account to be credible and takes on the client, there will be a press conference.”
A Palace spokesman said the Duke “unequivocally regrets his ill-judged association with Jeffrey Epstein” and “deeply sympathises with those affected who want some form of closure.”
EPSTEIN ‘USED PRINCE ANDREW AS BAIT’
Billionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein used Prince Andrew as bait in an attempt to lure women to his private island, according to an explosive new allegation from one of his alleged victims.
The woman, identified as “Jane Doe 15,” was 15 years old when she says agents for the late, disgraced financier approached her about the possibility of meeting the royal on Epstein’s Little St James island in the Caribbean.
Epstein took his own life in August while awaiting trial in New York.
The accuser, who says she was raped by Epstein in 2004 while staying at his Zorro ranch in New Mexico, declined the offer and never met the prince, reports the New York Post.
The latest revelations were first made public in a letter to the royal from Jane Doe’s lawyer Gloria Allred, according to the The Sunday Times in London.
“A central element of [Epstein’s] predatory behaviour was to present himself as having connections to the world’s most powerful people,” Ms Allred wrote.
“In trying to persuade her [to go to the island], Mr Epstein’s representative conveyed to Jane Doe 15 that Mr. Epstein was close to you, that you would be among the guests and that she would have an opportunity to meet you. Your prestige and reputation were directly touted in his attempts to engage in further harm,” the letter continued.
Evidence of Epstein and Prince Andrew’s close relationship has steadily grown in recent weeks and will likely increase pressure on the prince to speak with US investigators. In a BBC interview last month, Prince Andrew downplayed the relationship saying he only stayed at Epstein’s New York mansion because it was “convenient.”
Reps for Prince Andrew at Buckingham Palace declined comment to the Sunday Times.
In her complaint, filed in New York last month, Doe says Epstein raped her and then offered her cash when it was over.
“Epstein took my sexual innocence in front of a wall of framed photographs of him shaking hands and smiling with celebrities and world leaders,” she said. “After, he wanted to talk with me about what had just been my first sexual experience and directed me to take time to myself that night to cry. He said that would be beneficial for my growth.”
PRINCE ANDREW ACCUSED OF USING FAKE NAME
Meanwhile, reports have emerged that Prince Andrew was photographed leaving a members club seconds before his tycoon pal – the same friend who he was revealed to have set up a firm with under a fake name.
Tycoon Johan Eliasch and the Duke were pictured leaving Harry’s Bar in London’s exclusive Mayfair moments apart were taken just seven weeks ago, suggesting the old pals could still be in touch 17 years after they reportedly went into business together.
Buckingham Palace declined to comment, The Sun reports.
The Queen’s son reportedly used the name Andrew Inverness as he launched Naples Gold Limited with Mr Eliasch – the businessman who organised the 2001 holiday that saw the royal photographed with a “bevy of topless beauties”.
It is believed the royal had been visiting his friend when he was photographed on the yacht off Thailand in 2001, with the Monaco businessman footing part of his bill at the luxurious Amanpuri Hotel.
And the Daily Mail reported the pair also went into business together, launching the company in 2002 together.
In business documents, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor uses the name Andrew Inverness, apparently taken from his lesser known title, the Earl of Inverness.
Both Prince Andrew and Andrew Inverness – who lists himself as a professional consultant – share the birthdate of February 19, 1960.
The decision to use the pseudonym was “in order to avoid media attention”, it was claimed.
Since its inception 17 years ago, Prince Andrew has not spoken publicly about Naples Gold Ltd.
It was previously claimed Prince Andrew has used the same fake name, holding a 40 per cent stake in a company called Inverness Asset Management.
The company is registered in the British Virgin Islands, set up with wealthy benefactor David “Spotty” Rowland.
The royal was again linked to another company – listed as a creditor of a luxury ski company called Descent International.
While the company collapsed, a liquidator spokesman said they understood the listed “Andrew Inverness” was the Queen’s second son.
The revelations come as Prince Andrew has been faced with mounting criticism over his friendship with paedo financier Jeffrey Epstein.
It is understood Epstein and his alleged madame Ghislaine Maxwell – who has vanished amid the investigation – were also in Thailand at the time the photograph was snapped of Prince Andrew in 2001.
Most recently, Prince Andrew’s ex-wife Sarah Ferguson blasted the “nonsense” claims made against the royal.
Prince Andrew’s accuser, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, says she was trafficked by US billionaire paedophile Epstein and ordered to have sex with the Prince.
She alleges she was forced to sleep with the Duke of York at Ghislaine Maxwell’s home London, in New York and the US Virgin Islands as a 17-year-old in 2001.
Prince Andrew has denied the allegations and says he has no recollection of meeting her, with Fergie now backing him.
There are also fears The Queen’s is struggling to write her Christmas speech and is having a “very difficult time” after sacking her son Prince Andrew following his disastrous BBC interview over his relationship with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Meanwhile, Ms Roberts Giuffre, 36, has claimed the FBI has informed her about “a credible threat” against her life.
In a Twitter post this week, she wrote: “I have been informed from the F. B. I there has been a credible death threat against me.”
Ms Roberts has previously claimed”evil people” want to keep her “quiet”, tweeting: “If something happens to me, don’t let it go”.
THE QUEEN AND HER SPEECH
Queen Elizabeth II is facing a severe case of writer’s block as she prepares her annual Christmas speech amid a turbulent year for the royals and fallout from Prince Andrew‘s Jeffrey Epstein scandal.
The 93-year-old monarch is progressing slowly on the speech — a tradition that dates back to her grandfather King George V, and one she takes very seriously as her opportunity to address the nation, Vanity Fair reported this week.
“It’s still at a first-draft stage because of the election, but it probably hasn’t been the easiest speech to write,” a royal source told the magazine. “It has been a very different time behind the scenes, and morale is at a bit of a low.”
FERGIE CONTINUES TO BACK ANDREW
Sarah Ferguson has opened up about the toll the sex scandal surrounding her ex-husband Prince Andrew has taken on her and the couple’s daughters’, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, saying it’s been “hard” for the family.
In a new interview with Vogue Arabia, the Duchess of York called the claims against her ex-husband “nonsense”, amid fears the allegations are hurting the couple’s daughters.
“The last six months have been hard on the girls and me,” she told the publication.
“To see such a wonderful man go through such enormous pain. He is the best man I know.”
Prince Andrew’s accuser, Cairns-based woman, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, claims she was trafficked by US billionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein and ordered to have sex with the royal while she was underage.
She alleges she was forced to sleep with him at Ghislaine Maxwell’s home London, in New York and the US Virgin Islands in 2001, when she was just 17.
A photograph of Prince Andrew with his arm around Ms Roberts Giuffre’s waist at the time has been a key piece of evidence in the claims against him.
The Duke has denied Ms Roberts Giuffre’s allegations and says he has no memory of meeting her.
Ferguson, who married the royal in 1986 before the couple separated in 1992 (they were officially divorced in 1996) has steadfastly stood by him.
“It’s just incredible what he has done for Britain, and it’s all nonsense,” Ferguson said.
“So I talk about familyhood, and I’m very strong about it.”
The scandal threatens to overshadow Princess Beatrice’s upcoming wedding to Italian businessman, Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi. The two have already cancelled their engagement party.
FBI SAYS THREAT AGAINST ANDREW’S ACCUSER ‘CREDIBLE’
Meanwhile, Ms Roberts Giuffre has claimed on social media that someone wants to see her dead.
“I have been informed from the FBI there has been a credible death threat against me,” she said via Twitter.
It followed a stunning string of tweets raising concerns she may be attacked, Ms Roberts Giuffre denied she was suicidal as the fallout from her claims against the Duke of York continue to shake the foundations of the royal family.
I am making it publicy known that in no way, shape or form am I sucidal. I have made this known to my therapist and GP- If something happens to me- in the sake of my family do not let this go away and help me to protect them. Too many evil people want to see me quiteted 🦋 https://t.co/8463mPR6YU
— Virginia Giuffre (@VRSVirginia) December 11, 2019
Ms Roberts Giuffre, now 36, claimed in court documents that were struck out and in interviews on the BBC, that dead paedophile Jeffrey Epstein forced her to have sex with Prince Andrew.
“I am making it publicly (sic) known that in no way, shape or form am I sucidal (sic). I have made this known to my therapist and GP,” she said. “If something happens to me – in the sake of my family do not let this go away and help me to protect them. Too many evil people want to see me quieted.”
Ms Roberts Giuffre has been campaigning and supporting victims of sexual assault as the FBI continues its probe into Epstein’s activities.
“I can’t say it enough – this is an international problem not just the USA! When are we all going to wake up and revolutionise the way we treat victims but not only that but demand justice as not a victim but as of a human being? All voices matter! #Epstein #GhislaineMaxwell #Enough,” she tweeted.
Epstein took his own life in jail in August while awaiting trial on sex charges but there have been conspiracy theories he was murdered.
The chase for his girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell continues as she has not been seen since June but has reportedly been considering a television interview. A British newspaper is reportedly offering a reward for any sighting of the socialite.
Maxwell has been accused of procuring underage girls to have sex with Epstein and other men.
Maxwell was a friend of Prince Andrew’s and was the link between the billionaire and the Duke of York.
Prince Charles read his younger brother the Riot Act following his interview on the BBC where he failed to show sympathy for Epstein’s victims and raised more questions than he gave answers.
Witnesses now claim they saw the Duke at Tramp nightclub on the night he claimed he was at a Pizza Express in Woking, England, with his daughter.
His claims that he does not sweat have also been discredited by photographs.
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Ms Roberts Giuffre told the BBC that when they allegedly had sex at Maxwell’s London home in 2001, it was under Epstein’s direction.
“I just didn’t expect it from royalty. I didn’t expect it from someone people look up to and admire,” she said. “It was disgusting. He got up and said thanks and walked out and I sat there in bed, I felt horrified and ashamed and dirty.”
Prince Andrew has denied he ever met Ms Roberts Giuffre and rejected any wrongdoing.
BEATRICE CANCELS ENGAGEMENT PARTY
The fallout continued as Princess Beatrice cancelled her engagement party over the backlash surrounding her father.
The newly engaged royal, 31, and fiance Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, 36, had sent out invitations for the party to have been thrown at London celebrity hotspot Chiltern Firehouse on December 18, according to The Sun.
“Bea has had to change the date of her engagement party at the Chiltern Firehouse because of fears there will be too many photographers outside – looking for him,” a source reportedly told the Mail on Sunday.
“But the venue choice caused alarm among pals concerned it was far too high-profile given the sensitive time her family is going through.”
The couple has reportedly pushed back the date so that Prince Andrew “can sneak in under the radar”.
Princess Beatrice and Mapelli Mozzi became engaged earlier this year, and are yet to formally announce details for the wedding next year.
It has been reported that the couple have been instructed to not announce a wedding date until after the election, according to The Sun.
Prince Andrew, 59, is said to be on the guest list but it’s unclear whether he will attend the high-profile event after stepping back from royal duties in the wake of the scandal.
NEW CLAIMS FOR DISGRACED PRINCE
Prince Andrew has been hit with a string of new claims as his friendship with notorious paedophile Epstein continues to haunt him.
A second woman has contacted a lawyer working on a case against the disgraced financier’s estate saying she was abused by him and also had sex with the Duke of York.
The lawyer, who has not been named, has been investigating the claims.
Epstein was one of the world’s wealthiest men and was accused of running a paedophile ring with the help of Maxwell.
Prince Andrew was a friend of the couple and stayed with Epstein in New York after he was released from jail from his first conviction.
The second woman has not claimed that she was coerced into having sex with Prince Andrew, who has stepped down from royal duties since his train wreck BBC interview where he failed to show sympathy for Epstein’s victims.
“Her legal team are now carrying out a rigorous investigation,” a source reportedly told The Daily Mirror newspaper in the UK.
And there were also claims that Prince Andrew liked “four-handed massages”, according to an ex-girlfriend who spoke with online magazine Airmail.
The former stylist claimed: “(Prince Andrew) was particularly fond of four-handed (massages), where two women work on you at the same time.
“When mention of a foot massage came up in the (BBC) interview, I immediately thought, that’s him.”
The scandal surrounding Prince Andrew has threatened to tear the royal family apart, with Prince Charles, who has been taking on an increasing role, reading him the Riot Act.
Charles was instrumental in forcing Andrew, reportedly the Queen’s favourite son, to step down.
There have been questions surrounding whether Andrew will be allowed to attend church with the Queen on Christmas Day because sexual abuse protesters were planning to heckle him from the public crowds.
Andrew is 12 years younger than Charles and was born eight years after the Queen ascended the throne.
The monarch was warmer to Prince Andrew, according to Town and Country magazine.
She has been a steadfast supporter, even seen riding horses with him after he was ordered to step down from royal duties last month.
Prince Andrew may also have to submit to questioning from the FBI in the US as it continues its investigation into Epstein.
stephen.drill@news.co.uk
Originally published as Prince Andrew is seen arriving for the Queen’s annual Christmas lunch