Context is all, they say. And when you broadcast a documentary about the king’s paedophile-affiliated brother five days before the former’s coronation, they may be right. Context is certainly the greatest ally of Channel 4’s Andrew: The Problem Prince. It is based on an anatomisation of the before, during and after of the now and probably for ever infamous interview that Prince Andrew gave to Emily Maitlis on Newsnight in 2019. I know. Four years ago. And still the memory of him claiming to be unable to sweat as a result of trauma in the Falklands, and taking the kids to Pizza Express in Woking on the evening he was alleged to be having sex with a trafficked 17-year-old, is as crystal-clear as it ever was. Time has not done its gentle work. If it catches you unawares, you still jack-knife unstoppably in horror as it unleashes all the rest of its vicarious humiliation. “It was a convenient place to stay.” “A very ordinary shooting weekend.” “I’m too honourable.” Amazing.
The same disbelief clearly still attends the even more extensive recollections of Maitlis and her producer, Sam McAlister. The latter received the first approach from Amanda Thirsk, the prince’s chief of staff, in 2018, which was before Jeffrey Epstein – though by then a convicted sex offender – had come into UK public consciousness. When Newsnight declined the offer of what was essentially a puff piece, word came back that they were open to “a wider discussion”. He would talk about anything except his friendship with Epstein. Newsnight didn’t fancy being dictated to, so declined again. “Best decision ever,” says McAlister. It is clear that, quite rightly, the joy will never leave her. The prince and the “playboy” – AKA man-arrested-for-20-years-of-sex-trafficking-in-plain-sight – became headline news and Andrew became determined to use the interview to clear his name. It is not overtly stated but it is obvious that from then on, the main task of McAlister and Maitlis was to tread softly and not shatter the man’s illusions.
