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Prince Andrew is still dealing with the fallout from his relationship with pedophile Jeffrey Epstein. The Duke of York stepped away from the royal spotlight last fall after a disastrous interview regarding his friendship with Epstein, who took his own life in the middle of a sex trafficking investigation. While Andrew’s future remains uncertain, royal expert Melanie Bromley is not sure he will ever recover from the scandal.

Prince Andrew
Prince Andrew, Duke of York | Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

Prince Andrew refuses to talk about his friendship with Epstein

Lifetime recently announced that they are working on a four-part documentary that covers various aspects of Epstein’s life, including his business contacts and high-profile friendships. The tentative title of the project is Surviving Jeffrey Epstein.

The documentary will reportedly include interviews from several of Epstein’s victims, who will no doubt shed more light on his disturbing behavior. Filmmakers reached out to Andrew for an interview but he refused to take part in the project.

According to Express, Prince Andrew’s lawyers have advised against him discussing anything related to Epstein. Moving forward, the Duke of York’s attorneys will now handle any questions related to the scandal.

“Andrew’s legal team have told the Prince to conduct no more interviews after he spoke to BBC,” a source shared.

The insider noted that anything Andrew says could be used against him in a civil case, which is why his legal team advised him to keep quiet. The FBI is currently investigating Epstein’s business partners, and Andrew could easily be dragged into the case.

Inside Andrew’s scandal

Andrew’s friendship with Epstein has been well documented. Although Andrew says their relationship was purely business-related, one of Epstein’s victims claims differently.

Virginia Giuffre says Andrew had sex with her at the behest of Epstein. Giuffre was underage at the time of her alleged encounter with Andrew, and she has a photo of her and Andrew that proves they met at the very least.

Amid mounting pressure, Prince Andrew addressed the Epstein scandal during an interview on BBC’s Newsnight. Despite all of Epstein’s crimes, Andrew revealed that he does not regret their friendship as it proved useful in opening other opportunities.

Andrew also denied getting intimate with Giuffre and says that he does not recall meeting her at all. Although meant to clear his name, the interview completely backfired on Andrew and greatly embarrassed the royal family.

A few weeks after the interview, Andrew stepped down from the royal spotlight and has been keeping a low-profile ever since.

Will Prince Andrew ever recover from the Epstein scandal?

With Andrew on the outs with the royal family, Bromley believes that he may never recover from the Epstein scandal. In a recent interview, Melanie Bromley, who is the E! News Chief News Correspondent, said that Andrew’s scandal is “just too big” to turn around.

“Never say never. Some people recover so things can go on. It’s just too big, though. His opportunity was his big interview with ABC last year,” she stated.

Bromley argued that Prince Andrew could have had better excuses for his friendship with Epstein, including telling the press that he was too “naive” and “ignorant of the situation.”

“He could have really had a good answer for that. I don’t know if he can cover it,” Bromley added. “You know, there’s never going to be peace.  I don’t think [he will be mentioned] without ever mentioning his association with Jeffrey Epstein. It’s a situation that will be mentioned in your obituary.”

Andrew, of course, has not responded to the latest reports surrounding the Epstein scandal. He did, however, recently step out of the shadows, though his public appearance did not go over well with the public.

Andrew faces renewed backlash

Amid the coronavirus pandemic, Sarah Ferguson was spotted in a series of photos with Andrew packing up gift bags for a local hospice. The images were among Prince Andrew’s first since he stepped down, and royal watchers quickly slammed him for making a “trashy” attempt to repair his public image.

“He should do good works but not seek to win kudos by posting trashy photos,” journalist Tom Bower shared. “If only they would both accept that their only public duty is to remain invisible from the public.”

Fans also bashed Andrew and his ex-wife for not wearing proper personal protective equipment in the clip, including gloves and face masks. 

Andrew has not responded to the backlash. Ferguson’s assistant, Antonia Marshall, posted the images of Andrew. The Duchess of York shared similar images on her own Twitter account, though none of them featured Andrew.

Ferguson has not commented on the photos. She is reportedly isolating with Prince Andrew while the entire United Kingdom is under lockdown.