Prince Andrew was ‘delighted’ by how he was portrayed in Netflix’s new film about the interview which became his downfall, friends have claimed.
The film, Scoop, dramatises the infamous BBC Newsnight interview with Emily Maitlis in 2019 about the Duke of York’s friendship with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
The interview hugely backfired on him and led to the prince withdrawing from public life.
But friends of Prince Andrew claim he was actually pretty chuffed with how he was portrayed by Rufus Sewell in the film, which released earlier this month.
Although he was sometimes portrayed as a ‘vain buffoon’, he believes his hard work before being forced to step down as a working royal was accurately portrayed, the friend told The Daily Beast.
Prince Andrew ran Pitch@Palace, a platform to ‘amplify and accelerate the work of entrepreneurs’, between 2014 and 2019.
This was shown at the beginning of Scoop before Newsnight producer Sam McAlister began approaching Buckingham Palace for an interview.
A friend of Andrew’s who has spoken to the prince since the film was released said: ‘Obviously Andrew regrets doing the interview, and if he had his time again he wouldn’t do it.
‘That said, he feels Scoop is much more even-handed than he expected.
‘It’s fair to say he was delighted by Rufus Sewell’s portrayal of him.’
Another friend said: ‘I think the show, to the satisfaction of everyone who actually knows the guy, made clear that Andrew was an extremely good convener of people.
‘He did actually play a valuable role for the royals with Pitch@Palace and his other business-focused advocacy work.
‘When he was at a business meet and greet in a conference room in Hong Kong, there was real energy when he entered the room.
‘Those things are otherwise as dull as ditch water. He flew the flag for British business.
‘He knows he screwed up monumentally over Epstein—but nobody is now doing what he did then. He still has a lot to offer.’
Bombshell admissions revealed during the BBC Newsnight interview included Andrew denying that he could sweat, his trip to Pizza Express with Princess Beatrice as an alibi, and denials that he had ever met Virginia Guiffre despite being pictured with his hand around her waist.
Prince Andrew and Buckingham Palace have always denied any wrongdoing in relation to Virginia Guiffre.
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