THE Newsnight interview of Prince Andrew by Emily Maitlis was conducted in surroundings of stupendous opulence and splendour at Buckingham Palace.
If that was an attempt to cow or intimidate Ms Maitlis, it failed miserably. She did not show any deferential restraint in her questioning, something that took the squirming royal by surprise. She was forensically challenging in her grilling, treating Andrew like any other interviewee. As he struggled to sound credible with explanations that bordered on the ridiculous, he was betrayed by his damning body language.
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Prince Andrew believed that, as a royal, anything he said would be believed, not only be Emily Maitlis but by the unquestioning hoi polloi, the British public. That belief was born of a melange of arrogance, entitlement and crass stupidity. In the immediate wake of the interview, a YouGov poll showed that only 6% of the British public believed him. A repeat performance of that interview in front of Ms Giuffre’s lawyers doesn’t bear thinking about. Even Andrew knows that.
Prince Andrew could indeed avoid appearing in court, but what he can’t avoid is the court of public opinion.
Sandy Gordon
Edinburgh
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