Prince Andrew has sensationally given up using all his titles and honours after he was engulfed in a sex abuse case involving notorious paedophile and financier Jeffrey Epstein.
The dramatic development in the long-running debacle comes just days before the publication of a memoir by Andrew's late alleged victim, Virginia Giuffre, to whom he paid millions to settle a civil sexual assault case.
Andrew made the decision in close consultation with both the King and the Prince of Wales, with the monarch said to be "glad" at the outcome.
In a statement released on Friday night, Prince Andrew said: "In discussion with the King, and my immediate and wider family, we have concluded the continued accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty and the royal family.
"I have decided, as I always have, to put my duty to my family and country first. I stand by my decision five years ago to stand back from public life.
"With His Majesty's agreement, we feel I must now go a step further. I will therefore no longer use my title or the honours which have been conferred upon me.”
Key Points
- King Charles forces disgraced prince Andrew to give up Duke of York title
- Timeline of all the royal's scandals through the years
- Virginia Giuffre's family celebrates as Andrew drops titles
- What has happened to Andrew’s dukedom and is he still a prince?
- How Prince Andrew’s friendship with Jeffrey Epstein led to his downfall
Is Andrew still a prince? His titles explained
08:28
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Arpan Rai
Prince Andrew was given the prestigious title of the Duke of York, the highest rank in the British peerage, by his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II.
The Queen had a great personal affection for the title, which she gave to Andrew on the morning of his wedding.
It was a title once held by her father, King George VI, before he acceded the throne.
But now Andrew has finally been forced to relinquish his dukedom amid the long-running fallout of the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.
Prince Andrew told Jeffrey Epstein ‘we are in this together’ day after Virginia Giuffre photo emerged
07:55
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Arpan Rai
Prince Andrew told Jeffrey Epstein “we are in this together” the day after the infamous photograph of him with Virginia Giuffre emerged, according to reports.
The Duke of York also reportedly told his paedophile friend “we'll play some more soon” in the email dated 28 February 2011 – three months after the date he told the BBC he had severed contact with the disgraced financier.
The message is reported to also cast doubt on another of the claims Andrew, 65, made in his infamous 2019 interview with Newsnight – that his meeting with Ms Giuffre “didn't happen”.
Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre suffered nightmares of ‘greedy men on top of her’ years after abuse, new memoir reveals
07:30
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Arpan Rai
Virginia Giuffre revealed in a posthumous memoir that she endured nightmares of “greedy, heaving men on top of me”, years after she said she was sexually exploited by Jeffrey Epstein and his affiliates.
Giuffre, who died by suicide in April, had alleged that she was the victim of sex trafficking and that Prince Andrew was among Epstein’s circle of connections.
In a new memoir to be released next week, she wrote that she was still haunted by trauma almost 20 years later, while in hospital with Covid, according to excerpts obtained by The Sun.
Virginia Giuffre’s family celebrates after Prince Andrew drops royal titles
07:10
,
Arpan Rai
The family of Prince Andrew's late sexual abuse accuser, Virginia Giuffre, is celebrating the royal relinquishing his remaining titles amid continued fallout over his ties to the late sex criminal Jeffrey Epstein.
“This is not just a victory for her, but for every single survivor of the horrific crimes perpetrated by [Jeffrey] Epstein and his co-conspirators”, family members told The New York Post in a statement.
The family has called for Andrew, who has denied all wrongdoing, including Giuffre’s allegations, to lose his title of prince next.
Giuffre, who died by suicide earlier this year, was one of the first people to publicly call for charges against Epstein and has been an outspoken advocate for his alleged victims.
Watch: What did Virginia Giuffre say about royal titles?
06:54
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Arpan Rai
"As a Royal.. if you're not safeguarding the most vulnerable people in your community, why should you hold those positions of power?"
— BBC Newsnight (@BBCNewsnight) October 17, 2025
As Prince Andrew gives up his royal titles, watch the recent interview with Virginia Giuffre's family who spoke to #Newsnight about royal titles pic.twitter.com/tEvGDZfk3P
What are the recpercussions on Andrew's family?
06:25
,
Arpan Rai
As well as no longer using the title of the Duke of York, a long-established title that was gifted to him by his mother Queen Elizabeth II at his wedding to Sarah Ferguson in 1986, Andrew will also give up other titles: Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order and Royal Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter.He will remain a prince, which he is entitled to since birth.
Andrew's ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, will also no longer use the title of Duchess of York. Their children, Beatrice and Eugenie, will remain princesses.
Andrew's chaotic marriage to Ferguson, widely known as Fergie, lasted a decade though the two remain close, living together in a 30-room mansion near Windsor Castle.
Ferguson herself has been embroiled in Epstein-related allegations.
Last month, a number of charities severed ties with her after British newspapers published an email that she reportedly wrote to Epstein, describing him as a "supreme friend".
Newly-released documents show Prince Andrew took flights on Epstein's private jet
06:03
,
Harriette Boucher
Prince Andrew took additional flights on paedophile Jeffrey Epstein’s private jet four times, documents published just hours after Andrew announced he would stop using his titles show.
The flight logs reveal that Andrew flew from Luton to Edinburgh on 1 September 2006, with convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell, as well as a flight on 12 May 2000, where he is named as travelling with Epstein, Maxwell, celebrity chef Adam Perry Lang, a bodyguard and three others.
Two further flights in 1999 also showed the name “Prince Andrew”, alongside royal protection officer Steve Burgess.
Read more:
What Epstein related allegations does Prince Andrew face?
05:57
,
Arpan Rai
News that Prince Andrew would be ditching his title came in the wake of the release of excerpts of an upcoming posthumous memoir from Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who alleged that she was trafficked by Epstein and had sex with Andrew when she was 17. The memoir is due to be published on Tuesday.
Giuffre died by suicide in April at the age of 41. In the memoir, she details alleged encounters with Prince Andrew, who she sued in 2021.
Andrew denied her claims and said he didn't recall having met her.
This is the latest fall from grace for the 65-year-old prince, who had already stepped down from public life in 2019 over his links to Epstein despite his denials of any wrongdoing.
Prince Andrew: All the royal titles the disgraced Duke of York has given up
05:00
,
Harriette Boucher
Andrew and Sarah brought down by their friendship with Jeffrey Epstein
04:01
,
Maira Butt
Virginia Giuffre’s family celebrates after Prince Andrew drops royal titles over alleged Epstein ties
03:00
,
Maira Butt
The family of Prince Andrew's late sexual abuse accuser, Virginia Giuffre, is celebrating the royal relinquishing his remaining titles amid continued fallout over his ties to the late sex criminal Jeffrey Epstein.
“This is not just a victory for her, but for every single survivor of the horrific crimes perpetrated by [Jeffrey] Epstein and his co-conspirators”, family members told The New York Post in a statement.
The family has called for Andrew, who has denied all wrongdoing, including Giuffre’s allegations. to lose his title of prince next.
Josh Marcus reports:
Virginia Giuffre's family called for Duchess of York to be stripped of royal title in weeks before announcement
02:02
,
Maira Butt
“As a Royal.. if you're not safeguarding the most vulnerable people in your community, why should you hold those positions of power?” Virginia Giuffre's sister-in-law, Amanda Roberts, told BBC Newsnight last month.
Her comments came after it emerged that Sarah Ferguson, the then-Duchess of York, had called sex offender Jeffrey Epstein a “supreme friend”.
A spokesperson for Ferguson told the BBC that the comment was written to counter Epstein's threat to sue for defamation, and that she regretted any association with him.
"As a Royal.. if you're not safeguarding the most vulnerable people in your community, why should you hold those positions of power?"
— BBC Newsnight (@BBCNewsnight) October 17, 2025
As Prince Andrew gives up his royal titles, watch the recent interview with Virginia Giuffre's family who spoke to #Newsnight about royal titles pic.twitter.com/tEvGDZfk3P
In case you missed it: King Charles forces disgraced Prince Andrew to give up Duke of York title
01:00
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Maira Butt
Prince Andrew has been forced to finally relinquish all his remaining titles – including the Duke of York – following another week of damaging scandal under pressure from his older brother, King Charles.
The prince is handing back all the remaining honours he clung onto despite being stripped of his HRH title and public duties by his mother, the late queen.
It comes just days before the publication of a memoir by Andrew’s late alleged victim, Virginia Giuffre, to whom he paid millions to settle a civil sexual assault case, and after revelations he had held three meetings with a senior Chinese Communist Party official at the heart of the China spy case scandal.
Alastair Jamieson and Bryony Gooch report:
Prince Andrew's full statement on dropping his titles
00:30
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Maira Butt
In a statement released by Buckingham Palace on Friday, Andrew said:
“In discussion with The King, and my immediate and wider family, we have concluded the continued accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty and the Royal Family. I have decided, as I always have, to put my duty to my family and country first. I stand by my decision five years ago to stand back from public life.
“With His Majesty’s agreement, we feel I must now go a step further. I will therefore no longer use my title or the honours which have been conferred upon me. As I have said previously, I vigorously deny the accusations against me.”
Several charities dropped Sarah Ferguson after leaked emails to Jeffrey Epstein
00:05
,
Maira Butt
In the weeks before the announcement that Prince Andrew and his former wife Sarah Ferguson would drop their titles, the Duchess of York was dropped by several charities amid fallout from alleged links with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Seven charities dropped the Duchess of York as patron after leaked emails appeared to show her apologising to paedophile Epstein for disowning him.
Children’s hospice Julia’s House announced the move last month followed by food allergy charity The Natasha Allergy Research Foundation, Prevent Breast Cancer, the Teenage Cancer Trust and the British Heart Foundation.
Both the National Foundation for Retired Service Animals (NFRSA) and The Children’s Literacy Charity have also reportedly dropped Sarah Ferguson, according to the BBC.
The fresh series of scandals that have led to Prince Andrew's relinquishment of titles
23:45
,
Maira Butt
The announcement that Prince Andrew is giving up the use of his titles and honours comes days before Virginia Guiffre’s memoir, detailing allegations of sexual abuse against Andrew, is set to be released.
This week, Prince Andrew has made headlines for a series of scandals, including new revelations of his relationship with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, whom it was revealed he sent an email to three months after the date he said he had severed contact.
In the email, he told the paedophile, “we are in this together”, and “we'll play some more soon”.
It was also recently revealed that Andrew met a senior Chinese Communist Party official at the heart of the China spy scandal, at least three times in 2018 and 2019.
An extract of Virginia Giuffre’s memoir was also published on Wednesday, detailing the allegations of sexual abuse against the prince.
She claimed that Andrew believed having sex with her was “his birthright.”
Virginia Giuffre’s brother calls on King to 'take out the ‘prince’ in the Andrew'
23:37
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Harriette Boucher
Virginia Giuffre’s brother, Sky Roberts, said he would welcome any contact with the King.
“We would call on the King to potentially go ahead and take out the ‘prince’ in the Andrew,” he told Newsnight.
“I think it’s so important for the world to know how much of a hero she was, but how much of the stone is still left unturned to some degree. This is just one step of many,” he says.
“We have shed a lot of happy and sad tears today. I think happy because in a lot of ways this vindicates Virginia.”
Giving up his titles not really Andrew's choice, says royal expert
23:30
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Maira Butt
Robert Hardman, who wrote a biography about King Charles, has said that Prince Andrew giving up his titles was not really his choice and due to the various scandals he was engulfed in.
He told BBC News: "Things are simply not going away.
"And I think the palace has decided, and Prince Andrew has agreed, that there really has to be a further separation.
"He wants to look as if he's proactive and try and regain some dignity out of this."
Mr Hardman added that although Andrew won’t use the titles, he hasn’t been stripped of them.
'My message to King Charles would be bravo', says Epstein survivor
23:29
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Harriette Boucher
Haley Robson, a survivor of Jeffrey Epstein, has thanked the King for “standing up to the system and to the abusers” and would encourage him to give Donald Trump a call.
“Thank you for putting your people first and making the people a priority. Thank you for doing what is long awaited, what is appropriate, and for acting and doing the right thing. If you would like to give Trump a phone call, I encourage that,” she told Newsnight.
“This is why King Charles is king, he is showing the world, including America, what it looks like to have somebody held accountable.”
Virginia Giuffre's family call for the release of all Epstein files
23:17
,
Harriette Boucher
Virginia Giuffre’s sister-in-law, Amanda Roberts, has called for the US justice department to release all documents relating to Epstein.
Speaking on Newsnight, she said only 1 per cent of the documents relating to Epstein had been released.
“This country is in possession to the key to not only further incriminating Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, but taking down all the enablers.”
“It's so important, that is the justice that we are looking for. That is the justice Virginia wanted and we will non stop until that happens.”
Prince Andrew giving up his title is just “a small slither” of the justice, she says.
Sky Roberts, Giuffre’s brother, said there is more people that need to be held to account, further than Prince Andrew.
Prince Andrew has denied all allegations.
Prince Andrew remains 8th in line to the throne
23:15
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Maira Butt
Andrew has stopped using his remaining titles and honours, including the Duke of York, but he will remain a prince.
As the son of the late Queen Elizabeth he is still 8th in line to the throne.
The King's brother will retain the dukedom, which can only be removed by an Act of Parliament but he will not use the title.
He will also give up his knighthood as a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO) and his Garter role as a Royal Knight Companion of the Most Noble Order of the Garter.
The honours will both remain in existence but will not be used.
Andrew's downfall 'a joyous moment' for survivors, says Giuffre's brother
23:04
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Harriette Boucher
Speaking on Newsnight, Sky Roberts, Virginia Giuffre’s brother, said he had been talking to Epstein survivors all day.
“It's just a joyous moment for them, because we're finally getting some sense of acknowledgement that this actually happened, what we're saying is the truth.”
Mr Roberts said some of the pressure Prince Andrew faced would have come from Giuffre’s soon-to-be released memoir, which lays out new details of allegations of sexual abuse against Prince Andrew.
“I want to be clear, she's with us right now. She's smiling. She would be very proud of her survivor sisters.”
Amanda Roberts, Giuffre’s sister-in-law, said: “This is only the beginning of what is to come.”
Who was Virginia Giuffre? Epstein survivor helped spearhead battle against sex trafficker
23:00
,
Maira Butt
King Charles 'glad' about Prince Andrew announcement
22:45
,
Maira Butt
Prince Andrew’s decision to relinquish the use of his titles was made in conjunction with King Charles, who is said to be “glad” about the announcement.
“This decision basically was taken in conjunction with the King - yes, it was the prince's decision but with very close consultation with the King involved, and we understand that the King is glad of this outcome,” Sky News’ Royal correspondent Rhiannon Mills said on Friday.
What did the Duchess of York say about Epstein? Prince Andrew’s ex-wife dropped by charities over leaked emails
22:30
,
Maira Butt
A string of charities cut ties with Prince Andrew’s ex-wife Sarah Ferguson after newspapers published an email that she reportedly wrote to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein in which she called him a “supreme friend”.
Children's hospice Julia’s House said the reported words made it inappropriate for the Duchess of York to remain as a patron.
Other causes that dropped Ferguson included the British Heart Foundation, the Teenage Cancer Trust, Prevent Breast Cancer and the Natasha Allergy Research Foundation.
Jane Dalton reports:
What has happened to Andrew’s dukedom and is he still a prince?
22:20
,
Maira Butt
Relinquishing of titles does not mean they have been removed
22:06
,
Maira Butt
Andrew’s title and honours have been relinquished, which means he will not use them. But this does not mean that they have been removed and they remain in existence.
Legislation would need to be passed for Parliament to completely strip Andrew of the Duke of York title.
It is understood to be thought, in royal quarters, to be a waste of parliamentary time to bring an Act of Parliament to remove the dukedom entirely.
Andrew still remains a prince.
At last, we know why Fergie, Mandelson, Prince Andrew and others fell for Epstein’s ‘Hannibal Lecter’ charm
21:50
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Maira Butt
Poor old Fergie. Having lost so much of her reputation, been involved in so many scandals, been divorced, banned, cancelled, sacked, fooled, defrauded, made fortunes, squandered fortunes, loved, lost, sued and been sued probably more times than any human being alive – I bet you can’t name one – she’s now lost most of her remaining charity gigs.
As is made perfectly clear by Andrew Lownie in Entitled, the unremittingly harsh new biography of her and Prince Andrew, her former husband, she has mostly been the architect of her own misfortunes. But the latest story, about Jeffrey Epstein, feels especially poignant.
Sean O’Grady reports:
Virginia Giuffre's family celebrate after Prince Andrew drops titles
21:44
,
Maira Butt
The family of Virginia Giuffre is celebrating the news that the royal has been forced to relinquish his remaining titles amid continued fallout over his ties to the sex criminal Jeffrey Epstein.
Giuffre had laid out new details of allegations of sexual abuse against Prince Andrew in a forthcoming memoir, but died at the age of 41, six months before completing it.
She was a central figure in the downfall of disgraced paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.
“This is not just a victory for her, but for every single survivor of the horrific crimes perpetrated by [Jeffrey] Epstein and his co-conspirators”, family members told The New York Post in a statement.
The family has called for Andrew to lose his title of prince next.
Prince Andrew has denied all wrongdoing, including Giuffre’s allegations.
How Prince Andrew’s friendship with Jeffrey Epstein led to his downfall
21:37
,
Maira Butt
Prince Andrew has been under pressure for a long time over his association with paedophile financierJeffrey Epstein and his sex trafficker girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell.
Here is how that friendship led to the prince’s disgrace and downfall.
Andrew's announcement 'a long time coming', says councillor
21:31
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Maira Butt
Liberal Democrat councillor Darryl Smalley has expressed relief after he campaigned for City of York council to remove Prince Andrew’s freedom of the city status and for the royal to be stripped of his Duke of York title.
“We’d obviously lobbied quite hard and sent several letters to the palace and to Prince Andrew himself, all of which via recorded post and none of which was answered, but obviously a few years later the pressure has meant that the palace has had to act,” Mr Smalley told PA on Friday.
“It’s obviously a long time coming but finally they recognised what a massive liability he is.”
He added: “Pleased that a long-running campaign has actually led to something. It’s not often in politics, particularly the royal family, that they seem to listen.
“However, obviously, it’s yet another moment where we need to think about those who are impacted by what Jeffrey Epstein did and all of his associates.”
Andrew was stripped of his freedom of the city status after a unanimous council vote in 2022.
Prince Andrew believed having sex with me was his birthright, Virginia Giuffre memoir claims
21:24
,
Maira Butt
Prince Andrew acted as though having sex with Virginia Giuffre was his “birthright”, she claimed in her posthumous memoir.
Ms Giuffre, who was central figure in the downfall of disgraced paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein, died at the age of 41 in April, six months after completing the book, which lays out new details of allegations of sexual abuse against Prince Andrew.
Ms Giuffre, who settled a sexual assault lawsuit against the Duke of York, alleges the duke slept with her on three separate occasions. Prince Andrew has always vehemently denied any wrongdoing.
In an extract of the book, Nobody’s Girl: A Memoir Of Surviving Abuse And Fighting For Justice, Ms Giuffre described the prince as “friendly enough, but entitled” as she had sex with him on various occasions, including while staying at the house of Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s former girlfriend, near Hyde Park, London, in March 2001.
The extract, published in The Guardian, states: “Maxwell woke me up that morning by announcing in a sing-songy voice: ‘Get out of bed, sleepyhead!’ It was going to be a special day, she said. Just like Cinderella, I was going to meet a handsome prince!”
Virginia Giuffre's family called for Duchess of York to be stripped of royal title in weeks before announcement
21:09
,
Maira Butt
“As a Royal.. if you're not safeguarding the most vulnerable people in your community, why should you hold those positions of power?” Virginia Giuffre's sister-in-law, Amanda Roberts, told BBC Newsnight last month.
Her comments came after it emerged that Sarah Ferguson, the then-Duchess of York, had called sex offender Jeffrey Epstein a “supreme friend”.
A spokesperson for Ferguson told the BBC that the comment was written to counter Epstein's threat to sue for defamation, and that she regretted any association with him.
"As a Royal.. if you're not safeguarding the most vulnerable people in your community, why should you hold those positions of power?"
— BBC Newsnight (@BBCNewsnight) October 17, 2025
As Prince Andrew gives up his royal titles, watch the recent interview with Virginia Giuffre's family who spoke to #Newsnight about royal titles pic.twitter.com/tEvGDZfk3P
King Charles should be given power to remove titles, says MP
21:02
,
Joe Middleton
York Central MP Rachael Maskell has said it is time for legislation to give the King power to remove titles after Prince Andrew announced he would no longer use his.
She said: “I have long called for the title of the Duke of York to be removed in the light that it carries an ambassadorial association with our city.
“York is England’s only UN Human Rights City and stands for a higher set of values and when polled, 80% of York residents voted for the removal of the title.
“Having sought to change the law through my Removal of Titles Bill, I now think it is time for this legislation, which provides the King new powers to be able to remove titles or for a grand committee of both Houses of Parliament to make a recommendation to the King to remove a title.”
Prince Andrew told Jeffrey Epstein ‘we are in this together’ day after Virginia Giuffre photo emerged
20:55
,
Maira Butt
Prince Andrew told Jeffrey Epstein “we are in this together”, the day after the infamous photograph of him with Virginia Giuffre emerged, according to reports.
The Duke of York also reportedly told his paedophile friend “we'll play some more soon” in the email dated 28 February 2011 – three months after the date he told the BBC he had severed contact with the disgraced financier.
Tara Cobham reports:
