THE Duchess of York has leapt to the defence of her former husband, Prince Andrew, claiming he is a “wonderful man” who has gone “through such enormous pain”.

The prince was forced to quit royal duties following his disastrous Newsnight interview about his association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

In an interview with Vogue Arabia, believed to have been carried out before Andrew stepped down from public life, the duchess said the claims surrounding him were “nonsense”.

Of Andrew, who has strenuously denied claims from Virginia Giuffre that he slept with her when she was 17 after she was trafficked by Epstein, the duchess said: “When I talk about Prince Andrew, I talk about family because the last six months have been hard on the girls and me.

READ MORE: Vile and uncaring... Prince Andrew can’t hide from our revulsion

“To see such a wonderful man go through such enormous pain ... he is the best man I know. It’s just incredible what he has done for Britain and it’s all nonsense.”

The duchess also compared herself to the Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry’s wife.

She described the royal newbie as “fabulous”, adding: “I know what Meghan is going through.”

The duchess, who faced criticism from the press after marrying into the royals and then divorcing Andrew, said she could sympathise with the Duchess of Sussex’s experience.

The US-born former actress has revealed she had tried to cope with the pressures of her new life by putting on a “stiff upper lip” but was not prepared for the intensity of tabloid interest.

The duchess said: “It must be hard for Meghan and I can relate to her. I believe she is modern and fabulous ... I tend not to give advice because it is taken out of context but I have been in Meghan’s shoes and I still am.

“There’s always a twist of negativity and it just gets so sad and tiring – it’s hard and mean.”