THE Queen is defiant that scandals involving Prince Andrew and Prince Harrywill not ruin her final years on the throne, it has been claimed.
This week Andrew asked for a jury trial over rape allegations he denies, leaving royals convinced a public trial will cause IRREPARABLE damage to the Monarchy.
And Prince Harry and Meghan Markle continue to make headlines for all the wrong reasons, seeming to ignore anti-vaxx content on Spotify, failing to make content despite multi-million deals, and demanding UK police provide security.
But despite her disgraced son and wayward grandson, the Queen will do everything she can to ensure her final years on the throne don't trash the memory of her 70 years of incredible service to the country.
Media lawyer Mark Stephens told the Mirror he couldn't conceive that the Queen would allow Prince Andrew to press ahead with a public trial and overshadow this year's Platinum Jubilee – possibly the final major milestone of her reign.
“It’s going to spark debate about the relevancy and appropriateness of the royal family and we’ve already seen that they moved very fast to strip him of his titles and that debate abated but the more detail that comes out the more there’s going to be a problem for the wider royal family.”
Read our Royal Family live blog for the latest news and updates…
- Milica Cosic
'I’ve got docs that prove Andrew & Maxwell were pals'
This is an article by Christopher Warwick.
One of the most astonishing centres on the authenticity of the now infamous photograph, taken by Jeffrey Epstein in March 2001, of Andrew with his hand round Guiffre’s waist and a smiling Maxwell in the background.
That it is being challenged – though not for the first time in this unedifying saga – is because Prince Andrew, who claims to have no memory of it being taken, "lacks sufficient information to admit or deny the allegation that there exists photographic evidence of his alleged meeting with Giuffre".
But if that isn’t photographic evidence – and why would anyone go to the trouble of fabricating such an image at a time when today’s unimagined court action still lay 10 years distant – then what is?
Difficult to believe, too, when they were guests at the splendid Decades Birthday dance – at which I was also a guest – held by the Queen and Prince Philip at Windsor Castle in June 2000.
Read the article in full here.
- Milica Cosic
Prince Andrew's 'declaration of war'
US attorney Lisa Bloom who defended some of Jeffrey Epstein's victims shared her thoughts following Prine Andrew's demand of a 'trial by jury'.
She said: "He does have a lot to overcome.
"I'll tell you something else significant in the answer filed. He asserts some defence called unclean hands and estoppel, which is essentially that Virginia has done bad things, Virginia has a chequered past.
"He is indicating it's going to be a full attack on Virginia.
The argument is because she's done bad things in the past, therefore she should not be able to recover against him.
"From a legal point of view, that doesn't work in a child sexual abuse case – if you sexually abused a child, it doesn't matter what they might have done in their lives.
"As a matter of law, I don't think it's a particularly good defence. But as a matter of strategy, now we know.
"We wondered, 'are they going to treat her with kid gloves, or are they going to come out full throttle and go after her.'
And it's the latter, it's really a declaration of war."
- John Hall
Andrew's civil sex trial 'threatens the Monarchy' says lawyer
The Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations will be "overshadowed" by the Duke of York's civil sex trial and lead to questions about the "relevancy" of the royal family, a leading lawyer has said.
Media lawyer Mark Stephens said Andrew would also face detailed questions of a sexual nature when he gives evidence, whether in person or via video link, in the jury trial expected towards the end of the year.
But depending on developments, there was still the prospect the duke may reach an out-of-court settlement with Virginia Giuffre who is suing the Queen's son for sexual assault. The duke denies the allegations.
Mr Stephens said any trial could have far-reaching consequences for the wider royal family.
He said: "I can't conceive that the royal family will allow him to run this case and overshadow the Platinum Jubilee.
"It's going to spark debate about the relevancy and appropriateness of the royal family and we've already seen that they moved very fast to strip him of his titles and that debate abated but the more detail that comes out the more there's going to be a problem for the wider royal family."
- John Hall
Harry under fire for refusing to terminate £18m Spotify deal
PRINCE Harry is under pressure to end his £18million Spotify deal after the streaming giant was accused of promoting anti-vaxxer content.
Harry, 37, is set to release podcasts on the same platform as Covid jab sceptic Joe Rogan.
Yet just four months ago the Duke of Sussex hit out at news and social media outlets for “peddling lies” about vaccines.
He claimed the only way to “overcome” Covid-19 was to “break the system” of misinformation.
Last night a source said of Harry: “Refusing to cut ties with Spotify after they’ve aired anti-vaxxer material is incredibly two-faced.
“If he was that principled, and meant what he said, he’d cut ties, even if at a personal financial cost.”
- John Hall
Andrew 'trying to have his cake and eat it'
Legal expert Mark Stephens told The Sun that the filing was “classic brinkmanship” from Andrew and his legal team.
Solicitor Mr Stephens said: “He is trying to have his cake and eat it, to go with a modern theme."
It comes just weeks after Judge Lewis Kaplan threw out his lawyers attempts to derail the case by lodging a motion to dismiss claiming she had signed an agreement in 2009 not to pursue.
Andrew was previously thought to be seeking an out-of-court settlement with Roberts after Judge Lewis Kaplan ruled he must stand trial in the US.
The figure was estimated to be up to £10million ($13million) — the amount he will get from selling his chalet in Verbier, Switzerland.
- John Hall
Jubilee item sells out in seconds
THE QUEEN has sparked a shopping frenzy after one particular Jubilee item sold out within seconds of it going live.
A new range of commemorative items to mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee were released on the official Royal Collection website.
The limited-edition set of champagne saucers were out of stock just moments after being advertised to shoppers. The glasses, sold in pairs, cost £120 and are engraved with the EIIR cypher and olive branch emblem of the Platinum Jubilee.
However, there were only 70 available in the first place – the same number of years the Queen has held her position for.
- John Hall
Andrew's trial could be in 2022
Prince Andrew has asked for a jury trial and denied the allegations against him as he officially responded to Virginia Giuffre's sexual assault lawsuit.
Court documents from New York show the royal denies all of the allegations against him and "hereby demands a trial by jury on all causes of action asserted in the complaint".
A trial date is pencilled in for the end of 2022, taking place between September and December this year.
Virginia Giuffre accuses the Duke of York of forcing her to have sex more than two decades ago at the London home of Ghislaine Maxwell. The duke, 61, is being sued by Ms Giuffre, 38, formerly known as Virginia Roberts, in a US civil case.
Prince Andrew has always strongly denied the allegations against him.
- John Hall
Prince Andrew accused of being 'accountable to nobody'
A Labour MP has accused Prince Andrew of being 'accountable to nobody', over the numerous plane and helicopter trips he took while he was still a working royal.
The Prince was nicknamed "air miles Andy" for spending thousands of pounds on luxury air travel, of which some was paid for by taxpayers.
In 2015, the later Labour MP Paul Flynn commented on the Prince's excessive air travel.
He told The Telegraph: "He is accountable to nobody and if he is doing this using public funds there should be more information about what he is doing and what successes he is delivering.
“His role is very ill-defined. I’m surprised he doesn’t have enough to do in this country.
“And let’s not forget there were very serious criticisms made of Prince Andrew during his time as trade ambassador, because of the way he was conducting himself.”
- John Hall
Meghan faces cruel 'end game' as she's under attack
A data analyst fears that with the regular targeting by online trolls Meghan Marke is facing, the abuse won't stop until "someone is hurt" or tension "boils over.
Data published by analytics service Bot Sentinel found the Duchess of Sussex has been a victim of a £2.8million “hate-for-profit enterprise”.
The report found the Duchess was “actively targeted” by three anti-Meghan YouTube channels which accumulated a total of 497 million views.
Speaking to Express.co.uk, Mr Bouzy expressed his fears that these online “bots” won’t stop until they reach their “end game and “something happens” to the Duchess.
He said: “There is no doubt about what these people are doing, when you look at these tweets and constantly see people attacking her, what’s the end game?
"If she has already left the UK, she and Harry don’t have any royal duties or anything so why are they still attacking her.
“I believe that the end game is they want to see something happen to her, they want to see that it boils over so that she hurts herself or maybe someone hurts her or the marriage goes bust.”
- John Hall
Meghan and Harry's 'natural affinity'
The son of Anwar Hussein, who has taken unforgettable images of royal family members including the Queen and Princess Diana over the years, recalled the moment Meghan and Harry were welcomed when they stepped off the plane in Australia.
Speaking to People, Hussein said: "This little five-year-old boy, Luke Vincent, who has Down syndrome, ran out from under the rope and hugged Harry.
"It happened really quickly—I'm glad I had a long lens, as we were stationed a long distance away and got it all with Meghan's reaction."
Hussein continued to say: "It very much shows how they are. They'd just announced their pregnancy, and they were showing their natural affinity."
- John Hall
Kate 'has changed since joining the Royal Family'
According to a body language expert, Kate Middleton has become more confident since joining the royal family.
Judi James told Express.co.uk: "Her body language signals at the start of her marriage suggested a polite and charming woman who displayed gestures of a self-effacing shyness while she was inducted into her royal role.
“But since then she has worked hard to turn herself into a speaker and presenter who is at an almost professional standard.
“However she feels inside her externally projected persona now looks firm, capable and much more confident.
“Kate’s current body language shows how much she has grown in both confidence and charisma but without once compromising William’s obvious desire to avoid rabid interest or to provide any soap-opera-style narrative”.
- John Hall
Prince Charles 'dreading becoming King'
A royal biographer has claimed that Prince Charles is terrified of becoming king.
According to Penny Juror, although Charles has been training for the role for years, he will be devastated to take the throne from his mother.
Penny said: "This is a moment that he [Charles] has been dreading all his life really because his achieving the top job, the job he’s been training for and preparing for all these years does inevitably means the death of his mother and he loves his mother very dearly.
“So it’s going to be a very vicious week, moment and I think that I am sure that he is pretty terrified of the whole prospect.
"He is a very emotional man and a sensitive man, he did take the death of his father very badly. He takes the death of any loved one to heart and I think it would be, it’s devastating for him as it is for anyone who loses a much-loved mother.”
- John Hall
Prince Charles 'unlikely' to pass throne on to William
A royal biographer has claimed that Prince Charles is unlikely to abdicate the throne to pass it on to William.
Penny Junor claimed that there is "very, very little chance" that William will become king before Charles.
She told Podcast Royal: “I think there is very, very little chance that it would happen, constitutional Monarchy means our Monarchy is based on hereditary and if you start deciding that you should abdicate for somebody else then you lose the logic, I mean of keeping it within the family.
"I think it is inconceivable that he [Charles] would pass it along.
“As you say, he has been preparing it for a very long time, he would be the best-prepared Monarch this country has ever had. The only way, the only circumstance that I could see a change to that if, at the time of the Queen’s death, he was for whatever reason so unpopular, the public really didn’t want him but I think that is very, very unlikely.”
- John Hall
'40-year-old men don't just randomly put their arms around girls'
While commenting on the infamous picture which appears to show Prince Andrew and Virginia Giuffre, a GMB presenter suggested there might have been a reason he had his arm around her.
However, former US federal prosecutor Mitchell Epner speculated: "40-year-old men don't just randomly put their arms around 16 or 17-year-old girls they do not know are not related to, or not the children of friends at random parties.
"That does not occur."
- John Hall
Seven bizarre claims from Prince Andrew’s legal papers
The Duke of York has denied being a close friend of Ghislaine Maxwell, the convicted sex trafficker, while his lawyers say he wants a trial by jury to contest the claim brought against him by Virginia Giuffre.
Andrew faces damages which could "easily" be in excess of £14m if he loses the civil case, according to lawyers.
The Duke has consistently denied all the allegations, and on Wednesday, his lawyers officially filed documents to court. A trial is scheduled for later this year.
Here are seven bombshells from Prince Andrew's court documents.
- Doesn't admit to knowing whether Epstein was registered sex offender when he visited
- Denies being close friends with Maxwell
- Claims he wasn't frequent guest of Epstein
- Doesn't know if Virginia Roberts picture exists
- Doesn't know if he invited Epstein to Beatrice's 18th birthday
- Doesn't know whether he emailed Maxwell about Giuffre in 2015
- Claims Guiffre and others were responsible for her own alleged abuse
Read the article in full here.
- John Hall
Claims Guiffre & others were responsible for her own alleged abuse
Prince Andrew has refuted Giuffre's major claim of "sexual abuse" and "rape" when she was "under the age of 18".
His lawyers have stated: "Assuming, without admitting, that Giuffre has suffered any injury or damage, Giuffre and/or others, who are not Prince Andrew, contributed in whole or in part to the alleged damage."
Andrew's legal team also listed "consent" and the "doctrine of unclean hands" – alleging Giuffre acted unethically related to the accusations – among his defences.
"Giuffre's alleged causes of action are barred in whole or in part by her own wrongful conduct," they wrote.
- John Hall
Prince Andrew claims he wasn't frequent guest of Epstein
The Duke has denied that he was "a frequent guest in Epstein's various homes around the world, including New York City," where he has been accused of sexually abusing Giuffre.
In his 11-page "answer and affirmative defenses" to Giuffre's civil complaint, the Duke said he met Epstein "in or around 1999".
Andrew was pictured with Epstein in New York's Central Park in 2010 and admitted staying with him for several days despite knowing he was a convicted sex offender.
When questioned about why he stayed at a paedophile's mansion by Emily Maitlis on BBC's Newsnight in 2019, he replied: "It was a convenient place to stay."
During this stay, many young women were reportedly seen coming and going from the house, and literary agent John Brockman claimed to have seen the prince getting a foot massage from a young Russian woman, alongside Epstein, something he has denied.
- John Hall
Andrew will have ‘every bit of dirty laundry aired’
PRINCE Andrew will have "every single bit of dirty laundry aired in public," at the Virginia Roberts trial, a lawyer has claimed.
It comes as Andrew, 62, sensationally demanded a trial by jury overnight in his battle against sex abuse claims.
former US federal prosecutor Mitchell Epner says that Prince Andrew will in reality lose the case, whatever the outcome in court.
"If he goes to trial, he will either lose by having a verdict against him or he will lose because it will be the most pyrrhic victory in history because every single bit of dirty laundry he's ever had will be aired out in public," he told GMB.
The lawyer explained the demand for a jury is "a standard thing" he had to do if Ms Giuffre did decide to drop her demand for a jury trial and have the case tried by the judge.
He would not then be "stuck in front of the judge" who so far "has shown enormous antipathy towards Prince Andrew's attorneys".
- John Hall
Prince Harry's security risk has 'spiked since Megxit'
A royal expert has claimed that Prince Harry's security risk has spiked since Harry and Meghan stepped down from senior royal duties.
Richard Atch, director of operations for Mobus International Security said: "By virtue of the fact he is a senior member of the Royal Family, he is exposed to a wide variety of serious threats and the risks to those threats have increased since his departure from the Royal Family.
"The fact that he no longer received police protection, his risk to threats have certainly spiked.
"When you make a comparison between Prince Harry and other members of the Royal Family who don't receive protection; you have Harry who has served two tours in Afghanistan.
"He is a very high profile member of the Royal Family and he has somewhat developed a band of people who would take offence to his action from departing the Royal Family after moving over to the states."
- John Hall
Andrew's strategy branded 'risky'
A US legal expert has described Prince Andrew's strategy to try and attack and blame Virginia Giuffre as "incredibly risky".
Moira Penza, a former Assistant US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York said that the Prince is keeping his options open to how he will respond to allegations.
She said: "What we have seen in other cases, is that that is an incredibly risky strategy for someone in Prince Andrew's position to employ."
On the photograph which appears to show Prince Andrew with his arm around the 17-year-old Virginia, Ms Penza said: "What I think is happening there is you're never going to admit in this sort of filing, 'Yes, what Virginia Giuffre is saying about that photograph is true'. That just would never happen at this stage in the proceeding.
"But what he's doing is he's keeping options open, depending on how the facts play out in discovery over the course of a trial where perhaps he can make arguments as to why he's in that photograph, when that photograph might have been taken, what the circumstances were around that photograph, rather than it being specifically tied to sexual assault of Virginia Giuffre."
- Milica Cosic
Royal news you may have missed
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- Scruffy Prince Andrew told me to ‘f*** off’ when I thought he was an INTRUDER in Palace security scare, says ex-cop
- Prince Charles and William ‘in bid to stop Andrew fighting sex abuse case in court’
- Milica Cosic
Queen 'always forgives' Prince Andrew
A royal biographer has claimed that Prince Andrew was 'always forgiven' by the Queen and had a "radically different personality to his siblings.
Nigel Cawthorne wrote in the Daily Mail two years ago that Buckingham Palace staff found Andrew a “handful” from the very beginning.
He said: "He had seven nurseries in four palaces, endless sumptuous treats and far more of his mother’s attention.
“Somehow, Andrew was always forgiven — even when he sprinkled itching power in his mother’s bed or climbed on to the roof of Buckingham Palace to turn the TV aerial so that the Queen wouldn’t be able to watch the racing at Sandown Park.”
- Milica Cosic
Netflix show shows Harry & Meg want to ‘earn loads more money’
Harry and Meghan’s only podcast effort so far has been a 35-minute ‘holiday special’ in December 2020, featuring celebrity pals such as Elton John and James Corden.
But despite the lack of content, one expert, who spent a year working with Harry for an authorised biography, says she believes the couple may even be planning a talk show.
Angela Levin said last week: “This all seems to be a big turnaround from their philanthropic and non-profit work to just pure entertainment.
“It suggests they want to earn loads more money.”
- Milica Cosic
Andrew ‘trying to have his cake and eat it’
Legal expert Mark Stephens told The Sun that the filing was “classic brinkmanship” from Andrew and his legal team.
Solicitor Mr Stephens said: “He is trying to have his cake and eat it, to go with a modern theme.”
It comes just weeks after Judge Lewis Kaplan threw out his lawyers attempts to derail the case by lodging a motion to dismiss claiming she had signed an agreement in 2009 not to pursue.
Andrew was previously thought to be seeking an out-of-court settlement with Roberts after Judge Lewis Kaplan ruled he must stand trial in the US.
The figure was estimated to be up to £10million ($13million) — the amount he will get from selling his chalet in Verbier, Switzerland.
- Milica Cosic
'I’ve got docs that prove Andrew & Maxwell were pals'
This is an article by Christopher Warwick.
One of the most astonishing centres on the authenticity of the now infamous photograph, taken by Jeffrey Epstein in March 2001, of Andrew with his hand round Guiffre’s waist and a smiling Maxwell in the background.
That it is being challenged – though not for the first time in this unedifying saga – is because Prince Andrew, who claims to have no memory of it being taken, "lacks sufficient information to admit or deny the allegation that there exists photographic evidence of his alleged meeting with Giuffre".
But if that isn’t photographic evidence – and why would anyone go to the trouble of fabricating such an image at a time when today’s unimagined court action still lay 10 years distant – then what is?
Difficult to believe, too, when they were guests at the splendid Decades Birthday dance – at which I was also a guest – held by the Queen and Prince Philip at Windsor Castle in June 2000.
Read the article in full here.
Epstein and Maxwell were among the guests at Andrew's 40th birthday party
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