LONDON (Reuters) – The royal family is supposed to burnish Britain’s image, but Prince Andrew has generated quite a different buzz by consorting with a convicted US paedophile and having contacts with the Libyan leader’s son.
“Prince of Sleaze” ran a headline in yesterday’s Daily Mirror over a story about the 50-year-old Duke of York, who is fourth in line to the throne and is Britain’s roving trade ambassador.
“Andrew: I won’t quit over my pervert pal,” the Sun added.
The stories were a long way from the gushing coverage the British media have reserved for Andrew’s nephew Prince William and fiancee Kate Middleton ahead of their wedding next month.
Andrew has long had a strained relationship with newspapers, which have printed photographs of him enjoying himself on yachts or sunbathing surrounded by topless women, and nicknamed him “Airmiles Andy” for his use of publicly funded travel.
Andrew is now in hot water over his friendship with New York financier Jeffrey Epstein, who was jailed in 2008 for child sex offences.
His alleged links to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi’s son Saif al-Islam and the son of Tunisia’s ousted president, Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali, also have come under media scrutiny.
