Opponents have accused King Charles of courting “Bond villains” – ultra-wealthy individuals from the Gulf and the former Soviet Union who enjoyed access to him in exchange for cash donations.
But when it comes to controversial friendships, the king has nothing to do with his brother, Prince Andrew, as evidenced by this extraordinary photo from his daughter Princess Beatrice’s 18th birthday party.
Taken in 2006, it shows that among the guests who attended the lavish event at Windsor Castle were three of the world’s most notorious sex offenders: billionaire pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, his pimp Ghislaine Maxwell and convicted rapist Harvey Weinstein.
Beatrice even wore a £10,000 blue taffeta dress designed by Georgina Chapman, who later married then-Hollywood mogul Weinstein.
Prince Andrew’s warm relationship with Epstein is perhaps the most infamous of all his ill-advised associations.
A trio of now disgraced partygoers at Princess Beatrice’s 18th birthday: Harvey Weinstein, the late Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Weinstein and Maxwell are now in prison
A glamorous portrait – the kind the Yorks would like to remember. The family in glamorous costumes inspired by the early 19th century, from left the Duchess of York, birthday girl Princess Beatrice, the Duke of York and Princess Eugenie. Beatrice’s £10,000 blue taffeta dress was designed by Georgina Chapman, who later married Weinstein
The pair were introduced in 1999 by now-convicted sex offender Ghislaine Maxwell, and a series of visits by Epstein to royal residences, including Balmoral and Windsor, followed. The prince also flew Epstein’s private jet to the financier’s private island of Little St James.
According to Virginia Guiffre, who described herself as Epstein’s “sex slave,” she was forced to have sex with Prince Andrew at Maxwell’s home in Belgravia in 2001, in the same year at Epstein’s New York home and at his private -Island. Andrew has always vehemently denied the claims.
In 2008, Epstein was sentenced to 18 months in prison after pleading guilty to prostituting minors. After his release in 2010, Andrew was photographed with Epstein in New York’s Central Park.
In 2019, he was forced to step down from his public role after his disastrous televised interview with Newsnight’s Emily Maitliss about the friendship. When asked if he regretted the relationship, he extremely said he didn’t because “the people I met and the opportunities I got to learn, either through him or because of him, were actually really helpful ‘.
Earlier that year, Epstein committed suicide in prison after being charged with sex trafficking. In 2022, Andrew reached a multimillion-pound settlement with Ms Giuffre.
Many other dubious characters have also had relationships with the Prince over the years. He is said to have developed a “close friendship” with billionaire dictator Ilham Aliyev, the president of Azerbaijan, whose regime allegedly rigged elections and jailed political opponents, among other human rights abuses.
The Duchess of York with disgraced film mogul Harvey Weinstein and his ex-wife Georgina Chapman in 2016
Sarah Ferguson with Georgina Chapman at Cap d’Antibes in 2015
Ghislaine Maxwell catches up with friend Prince Andrew in leaving Aurelia Cecil’s wedding in 2000
In 2008, Andrew vacationed in Tunisia with Tarek Kaituni, a Libyan man convicted of arms smuggling in 2005. He reportedly helped organize meetings between the prince and the late dictator Colonel Gaddafi. Andrew also accepted a $30,000 gold necklace from Kaituni as a gift for Princess Beatrice.
He has also been accused of hosting a luncheon at Buckingham Palace for Mohamed Sakher El Materi, the billionaire son-in-law of deposed and allegedly deeply corrupt Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.
On another occasion, he dined with Nursultan Nazarbayev, the corrupt president of Kazakhstan, whose son-in-law subsequently bought Andrew’s mansion, Sunninghill Park, for £3 million above the asking price.
How the Daily Mail reported on Beatrice’s 18th birthday at the time
Andrew’s association with David “Spotty” Rowland, a Conservative Party donor dubbed the “tax haven tycoon,” has also sparked much speculation.
Based in Guernsey, where he owns the palatial Havilland Hall, the father of eight was once described as ‘like an older surrogate brother to Andrew’.
He acted as the Duke’s financial adviser and has proved to be a central figure in his business and financial affairs for many years – including lending Andrew £1.5 million in 2017 and giving Sarah Ferguson £40,000 to pay off her debts. unload.