Queen suggested Andrew devote himself to charity work as way back, says source

01 February 2023 , 15:48

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Queen suggested Andrew devote himself to charity work as way back, says source

The late Queen suggested Prince Andrew's way back to public life was to devote himself to charity work, a source has claimed.

The disgraced Duke of York was forced to step down from royal duties in 2019 after a disastrous Newsnight interview where he talked about his association with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

Last year, he was stripped of his military affiliations and patronages by his mother the Queen in the wake of a sex scandal.

He denied the allegations against him and later came to an out-of-court settlement with his accuser Virginia Giuffre. The settlement is not an admission of guilt.

Prince Andrew with his mother the late Queen (Getty Images)

Now friends of Andrew have claimed that his mother the late monarch believed that if Andrew threw himself into charity work, he may have been able to rehabilitate his image.

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It is reported that the idea was similar to that of disgraced minister John Profumo, who devoted himself to charity work after he was embroiled in a scandal following an affair with Christine Keeler.

A source told the Independent: "Andrew’s mother suggested the route forward was taking on a charitable cause.

Prince Andrew stepped down from royal duties (POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

"Other members of the family agreed and saw it as his only way to rehabilitation."

Meanwhile, earlier this week, a top lawyer rubbished claims Andrew is aiming to overturn his £3million court settlement with Virginia Giuffre.

Andrew has reportedly consulted a legal team in the hope of forcing a retraction or apology, which could lead to a return to royal duties.

But US attorney Spencer Kuvin, who represents nine victims of Epstein, slammed the idea as "unbelievable", adding: "There's a PR campaign at work."

Prince Andrew with Ghislaine Maxwell (Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images)

It comes after jailed Ghislaine Maxwell, 61, once close to the Duke, last week repeated her claim that the photo showing Ms Giuffre at 17 with the royal’s arm around her was a fake.

Mr Kuvin also hit out at the release of a snap taken by Maxwell's family showing two masked people in a bathtub at her London home in which Ms Giuffre claims she had sex with Andrew.

Ian Maxwell, Ghislaine’s brother, told a newspaper: "They show conclusively the bath is too small for any sort of sex frolicking."

But Mr Kuvin said of the bath snap: "It's absurd. They seem to be saying Virginia was in the house after all. It undermines their case.

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"As for Ghislaine’s comments about the genuine photo of Andrew with Virginia at her home in London, it shows a lot of work is being done on his behalf – he's desperate to rehabilitate his image. Ghislaine protects the men in her life. She’s hoping Andrew can help her."

Jennifer Newton