Queen Elizabeth news: Her Majesty hints at mobility problems during in-person engagement as Prince Andrew to KEEP title

Gary Lineker receives backlash for mocking Prince Andrew

Gary Lineker has come under fire after making light of the settlement reached between Prince Andrew and Virginia Giuffre.

Following news of the settlement being reached, Lineker took to social media to make a joke relating to Crystal Palace and their bid to avoid relegation from the Premier League.

On Twitter, he wrote: “Reports that Palace have spent as much as £12m on Giuffre. I’m not sure it’s enough to avoid going down.”

The Match of the Day host faced backlash from fans, with one replier writing: “Don’t forget a young girl was trafficked in all this Gary.”

Others were also less pleased, writing: “Not to be too ‘woke’ but it’s probably not a laughing matter for her and those that are the victims of such crimes.”

A third simply added: “No Gary. Delete this one mate.”

Queen to pay part of settlement

Despite the Queen privately making millions of pounds worth of financial donations to Prince Andrew towards his case, it is now thought that The Monarch has agreed to help the Duke of York fund the out of court settlement to Virginia Giuffre.

Prince Andrew will pay his accuser Ms Giuffre more than £12 million.

His mother, the Queen has already privately made millions of pounds of financial contributions to the Duke’s legal fight and according to the , it is thought that her latest financial contribution will be of around £2 million pounds.

The Mirror reported a source saying that she, “could not be seen to be making a payment to a victim of sexual assault, who accused her son of being an abuser”.

“But a deal was structured in such a way to arrange a sizeable financial contribution to the settlement by way of a charitable donation instead,” the source added.

Parliament to raise funding of Andrew's settlement

Andy McDonald, the MP for Middlesbrough, has announced he intends to seek assurances in parliament that public money will NOT be used to fund the Duke Of York's settlement. McDonald has said that he would raise the issue when MPs return to Westminster next week.

He told BBC Two’s Newsnight: “This is a person of very high profile involved in a case where his position of authority and privilege has been allegedly abused and it is an enormous sum of money.

“We don’t know the precise figure but there is a risk that this will be at the public’s expense so we need to have that resolved. We need to know exactly where this money is coming from.

“I am going to take the opportunity to raise this issue in parliament because the issue isn’t going to go away until people have that information and receive assurances that public money is not going to be used to in any way contribute to the settlement.”

Andrew’s ‘arrogance’ prevented earlier settlement

US attorneys representing victims of Jeffrey Epstein have hailed Tuesday’s settlement between Prince Andrew and Virginia Giuffre as a “victory”, however one lawyer has claimed that The Duke's "arrogance" stood in the way of settling sooner.

“It’s another banner day for the survivors,” Robert Lewis, a New York-based lawyer for Sarah Ransome, who was abused at the age of 22 and settled a lawsuit with Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell in 2018, told .

Lewis also said he felt the victims had “been heard, and were no longer silenced” after Maxwell was convicted in December.

However, Lewis said he was surprised the prince had not settled the case sooner. When questioned if there had been “any element of arrogance” in the prince’s delay in settling, Lewis said: “That’s absolutely the case.”

“It’s true for Epstein, it’s true for Maxwell, it’s true for the Catholic church, it’s true for the prince … they think the law on some level applies only to everybody else.

“The settlement does not surprise me. What does surprise me is that he and his advisers and lawyers didn’t see this earlier and come to terms with it much earlier.”

Did Andrew have 'sex' in a bath with Virginia?

Virginia has previously claimed she romped with Andrew in a bath when she was 17, after a night where he had allegedly been plying her with vodka at a London club.

Maxwell had previously said her bath was "too small" for sex.

In a manuscript, Virginia claimed: "It was a beige marble tiled floor with porcelain Victorian-style bathtub in the middle of the room and nowhere near the size of Jeffrey's residences."

She added: "I turned on the taps for the tub and the heat from the water began to steam up the small room.

"Trying to do the best of my youthfulness to try and act seductive, I gradually began to strip off my clothing, piece by piece.

"He loved every second of it as I went over to where he was waiting and watching, then began to undress him.

"We kissed and touched each other before submersing into the hot water, where we both continued to re-enact foreplay."

She said the pair then "retired to my bedchambers for the longest ten minutes of my life".

Andrew’s pal claims disgraced duke will return to royal life

Andrew's pal has claimed the disgraced duke will RETURN to royal life after settling with his sex abuse accuser.

Colonel Rupert Wieloch even said Brits will "forgive" the Duke of York after he avoided spilling his secrets by swerving a court battle.

The former British commander, who trained alongside Andrew in the military, insisted his old chum has a real shot at redemption.

He suggested the Duke could return as a front-line royal - spectacularly comparing his future comeback to that of Camilla Parker Bowles.

Andrew was previously stripped of his royal title, all military honours and patronages after a face-to-face showdown with the Queen in January.

Col Wieloch told Good Morning Britain: "My sense is that the British people do forgive people who are genuinely regretful of their mistakes in the past.

"With time - a very long time - it is possible for a way back to be paved out for Prince Andrew."

Andrew’s settlement latest

• Virginia and Andrew were both facing depositions under oath in coming weeks
• The Palace remains silent on Andrew’s settlement
• Virginia was reported to have “lost” the infamous original photo of her with Andrew
• The Duke’s lawyers were hunting for women who could “discredit” Virginia
• Andrew’s mysterious wealth came under the spotlight as he lived a millionaire party lifestyle
• Prince Charles banished Andrew from Windsor and told him to “stay out of sight“
• Andrew’s former physio slammed the Duke as “creepy” as he would get naked for massages

BBC’s royal correspondent sparked backlash last night

The BBC’s royal correspondent last night sparked backlash when he suggested Andrew could return to public life by becoming a campaigner against sex trafficking.

Speaking on live TV, Nicholas Witchell said: “What of Andrew’s future, could there possibly be a route back to a public role. I have to say it’s hard right now to see one.

“He’s been shown to have such poor judgement, such poor choice of friends and the brutal fact is would anyone actually want him?

“Would any charities or regiments want to be associated with him after all of this? After all, there is no admission of liability.

“Perhaps the answer is as he says at the end of this statement, to pledge to support the fight against the evils of sex trafficking and by supporting its victims.

“Perhaps that offers the best or only route back for him.”

Ms Guiffre could release a ‘tell-all book’

Royal expert Angela Levin said a “tell-all book” from Ms Guiffre could make the humiliating case “drag on and on” for the Royals.

She told the Sun: “Apparently Virginia is allowed to write a book about herself – or broadcast about herself as she sees fit. 

“So if that’s the case it could drag on and on. 

“We don’t know when she will do that, we don’t know when it might be broadcast. 

“The sort of smell will stay with Andrew and the Royal Family. There’s no clean-cut end.”

Andrew views settlement as way ‘BACK IN’ with royals, experts say

The out-of-court agreement means Andrew won’t be publicly grilled over claims he raped and abused Ms Giuffre when she was 17.

Her lawsuit saw him stripped of his royal title, all military honours and patronages after a face-to-face showdown with the Queen in January.

But now, the Duke of York sees his settlement as a way to regain his former roles – and he hopes to take on a few “quiet patronages”.

Royal expert Adam Helliker claims the settlement – which has “spared the Queen the gruelling details” of her son’s relationship with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein – “play’s into Andrew’s hands”.

Mr Helliker told the Sun: “Andrew envisages a way back.

“I think he will see this as a kind of way to give it a year and take on a few quiet patronages.

“In English law it would have been seen by everyone else as: ‘If he really is innocent then why didn’t he go to America to fight it’.”

Royals that no longer need to take the stand

Prince Andrew's settlement now means that key royals will no longer need to take the stand including Princess Eugenie, Princess Beatrice and Meghan Markle.

Beatrice could have had to testify about a trip to Pizza Express in Woking.

Andrew said the trip happened the same night a witness saw him dancing with Ms ­Giuffre at Tramp nightclub in London - hours before the royal allegedly had sex with the teen.

Eugenie could also have faced a subpoena from US lawyer David Boies in a bid to cast doubt on the Pizza Express alibi.

The third royal who could have faced the witness box was Meghan Markle.

Mr Boies reportedly believed the Duchess of Sussex has “important knowledge” and can be relied on to “tell the truth” about the royal’s behaviour.

Public likely to take offence

Mr Helliker told The Sun that the public will likely take offence to the Queen footing her son's bombshell settlement costs.

Prince Andrew caved in after 72 hours of secret negotiations to avoid overshadowing the Queen’s jubilee celebrations.

In a statement, he hailed his accuser’s "bravery".

The embattled royal struck a megabucks deal with accuser Ms Giuffre just weeks before he was due to be quizzed on oath.

Ms Giuffre is said to be “very, very pleased” with the unprecedented settlement.

The sum remains secret but could reach £12million, say experts.

Settlement is ‘admission of guilt’, blast royal experts

While Andrew has always strongly denied all the claims made against him - royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams questioned why he would agree to the fee if he was so sure of his innocence.

Richard told the Sun: "Essentially has he admitted that he has done any wrong at all?

"No. Regretting his association with Epstein doesn't count.

"He claimed innocence, but he has settled and many would regard this as an admission of guilt.

"If he was innocent then why did he pay?

"The amount is confidential but nonetheless he did not admit to any of the accusations.

"It may therefore safely be assumed that at least this particular case is behind him.

"What is in front of him, however, is huge."

Queen ‘to pay towards Prince Andrew’s £12m settlement

Following Prince Andrew's settlement, it has been reported last night that the Queen will pay towards the cost of the agreement.

The Duke of York, 61, settled claims he raped and abused Ms Giuffre when she was 17 out of court for an undisclosed sum of money - which has been speculated to be up to £12million.

The 95-year-old monarch - who paid Andrew's legal fees in the run up to yesterday's agreement - will help fund the settlement, according to .

And royal expert Adam Helliker claims the Queen had to cover the cost because Andrew "doesn't have any income".

Mr Helliker told the Sun: "No one has that kind of money but his mother.

"Andrew is not close enough to the Prince of Wales for him to fund that kind of money. He doesn't have any income."

Queen carries out first official duties since Covid scare

THE Queen has carried out her first official engagements since she faced a Covid scare.

The 95-year-old monarch today held virtual audiences from Windsor Castle just days after Prince Charles tested positive for the virus.

She was pictured greeting the Estonian ambassador, Viljar Lubi, who spoke to Her Majesty via video-link from Buckingham Palace.

The Queen also beamed through the screen at the Ambassador of Spain, Jose Pascual Marco Martinez, this morning.

Charles, 73, last week revealed he had caught the bug for the second time, 48 hours after having afternoon tea with his mum.

Wife Camilla later said she too had returned a positive test, sparking fears Her Majesty may have also contracted it.

David Boies is reportedly "not worried" about producing the original

The photo was reportedly printed on March 13, 2001, just two days after it was taken.

Roberts previously revealed she had lost the photo in 2016 as part of her deposition during a successful libel action against British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, but her sworn testimony was only unsealed in 2020.

She said she gave the picture to the FBI in 2011 as part of its investigations into Epstein. The FBI has since declined to confirm whether it had been passed the photograph, or whether they had handed it back.

Sources close to her say they don't believe the disappearance of the photo will affect the case as they will still look to admit a copy as evidence, and that her case doesn't rest upon the picture.

Roberts' lawyer David Boies is reportedly "not worried" about producing the original.

Virginia Roberts has ‘LOST’ infamous photo of her with Prince Andrew, claim pals

PRINCE Andrew's accuser has reportedly lost the infamous photo which appears to show the Duke of York with his arm around the teenager's waist in a sensational twist ahead of next month's civil case.

Lawyers representing Virginia Giuffre, who was known as Virginia Roberts at the time the photo was allegedly taken, say the original, supposedly snapped at the London home of Ghislaine Maxwell by Jeffrey Epstein, has been misplaced.

The notorious photo shows a smiling 17-year-old Roberts with Andrew's arm around her bare midriff, as convicted sex trafficker Maxwell looks on in the background.

Sources close to Roberts claim the picture went missing while she was moving from Colorado in the US to Sydney, Australia, where she currently lives, at some point between 2011 and 2016.

In fact, insiders say, the original - which Andrew's legal team have always claimed could have been faked - may not even exist anymore.

"The picture is not in Virginia's possession," a source close to Roberts told .

Andrew went on "holiday after holiday"

Throughout the noughties, Andrew was working as a trade ambassador until he stepped down in 2011.

During this time he is thought to have schmoozed with the rich and powerful, including going hunting with Kazakh leader Nursultan Nazarbayev and having a meeting with Libyan dictator Colonel Gaddafi.

Andrew is reported to have always travelled in style - including taking his own massage mattress with him, having a personal pedicurist, and having a valet armed with an ironing board.

And it's during this period it was claimed the teetotal Andrew would pop £300 bottles of champagne for his pals as he frequented nightclubs and went on "holiday after holiday".

David McClure, whose book  was released in 2020, told The Sun Online: "The answers behind Andrew's sources of wealth are shrouded in mystery."

The royal expert said that questions have been raised about Andrew's wealth "for at least 15 to 20 years".

Could Prince Andrew appear with royals at Philip's memorial service?

The Duke of York is likely to want to appear alongside the royal family at the Duke of Edinburgh's memorial service next month.

Andrew will undoubtedly be keen to pay his respects to his late father Philip in Westminster Abbey on March 29, in the wake of settling his US civil sexual assault case.

But the duke's appearance is anything but certain, and has the potential to massively overshadow the high profile occasion honouring Philip's achievements and life of duty.

Large numbers of the royal family including the Queen are due to attend, alongside Philip's friends, colleagues and representatives of organisations he supported.

Much is likely to depend on whether the Queen considers the thanksgiving church service a family event or an official engagement, and how much she and royal aides fear Andrew's presence would detract from the proceedings.

The views of future king the Prince of Wales and second in line the Duke of Cambridge are also likely to be taken into account.

Andrew must withdraw title to show respect for people of York, MP says

The Duke of York must withdraw his title to show "respect" for people living in York, an MP for the city has said.

Labour's Rachael Maskell, who represents York Central, has said Andrew must remove his association with the city in light of the settlement in his civil sex case brought by Virginia Giuffre.

Ms Maskell welcomed Andrew's pledge to donate money to Ms Giuffre's charity which supports of victims' rights, but said his relationship with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein has caused "deep hurt and embarrassment" to York residents.

She said: "Although it is a relief that Prince Andrew has finally acknowledged and expressed regret for his close association with a convicted sex offender and sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, his long delay in doing so and initial response to the charges and Ms Giuffre have been source of deep hurt and embarrassment to many people across the city.

"Carrying a title does create an ambassadorial relationship with that place, and for somewhere with a global reputation, such as York, this is extremely important.

"It is to be welcomed that he has now pledged to support the fight against the evils of sex trafficking and it's victims.

"To demonstrate his seriousness in this endeavour, and his respect for those affected by abuse and the people of our city, I would ask that his first act of contrition is to confirm his support for the withdrawal of his ducal title."

'Public should be told of Andrew's funds for sex case settlement'

The amount paid to the Duke of York's accuser to settle the civil sex assault claim against him should be made public and so should the source of the funds, a royal finances expert has said.

No details have been disclosed with regard to the settlement made to Virginia Giuffre or the costs, but there has been speculation that Andrew has agreed to pay an eight-figure sum.

Last month, Buckingham Palace announced that the duke would be defending the case "as a private citizen", but a number of commentators have claimed that would not stop him having been helped along with money from the Queen's private wealth.

Andrew receives a Royal Navy pension and the Queen is also thought to fund her son from her £21.7-million-a-year Duchy of Lancaster income, but the figure she gives him is kept private.

David McClure, author of Royal Privilege: The Queen's True Worth, said a settlement could be "in the order of several million dollars".

Prince Andrew news: The latest

• Andrew's pal claims the British public will "forgive" him in time
• An expert says the duke views his settlement as a way "back in" with his family
• The royals are bracing for a tell-all book from accuser Virginia Giuffre, who didn't sign an NDA
• The Palace has remained silent after yesterday's announcement
• The duke's decision will mean that Meghan Markle, Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice will never have to take the stand