Prince Andrew was photographed at Windsor Park enjoying a September gallop in the sunshine.
The royal, who stepped back from public roles in 2019 following the Jeffrey Epstein scandal, appeared relaxed as Prime Video’s three-part series, A Very Royal Scandal, was released tomorrow.
The programme tells the true story of how the interview came about and the famous 2019 BBC One meeting between Prince Andrew and journalist Emily Maitlis.
Today, the 64-year-old former royal appeared carefree as he rode his horse around Windsor Castle on Wednesday.
The late Queen’s youngest son wore a black and white hat, a waxed jacket and riding breeches as he rode through Great Windsor Park, smiling.
Carefree: The 64-year-old Duke of York looked relaxed as he rode his horse in Great Windsor Park this morning ahead of the release of Prime Video’s three-part A Very Royal Scandal, about his 2019 interview with Emily Maitlis
The former BBC journalist, 54, was on the show to promote the new Prime Video three-part series A Very Royal Scandal, which follows the story of setting up the interview (seen) and the famous meeting itself
Amazon Prime released the trailer for upcoming drama A Very Royal Scandal on Wednesday, after announcing when it would arrive on the streamer
Tomorrow sees the long-awaited revelation of Prime’s views on the interview, which would lead to the Prince stepping back from public duties – a role he had held for most of his life.
This week, former BBC journalist Maitlis, 54, told what it was like watching the series for the first time.
Maitlis is played by actress Ruth Wilson, 42, while Michael Sheen plays the Duke of York.
In an interview with ITV’s Good Morning Britain, Maitlis spoke about the time she gave the interview, candidly saying that watching the series back made her realise how stressful it is to take on the challenge.
She said: ‘When I watch the drama, my heart starts to race – it takes me back to when I thought ‘will I remember to ask the right questions? Can I do this?”
Actor Michael Sheen (left) plays the Duke of York (right) in the new production, but he appeared to be absent from the NYC screening
Emily Maitlis reflected on her historic 2019 interview with Prince Andrew when she appeared on Good Morning Britain on Wednesday
She added of her reaction to Prince Andrew’s behaviour: ‘I realised early on that he would be candid in his answers. We never assumed guilt and it was an hour of his own words.
“It didn’t matter what he said, it would always make history. We knew we only had one chance to hear it from the Prince. In any case, it was a public document.
“We were trying to get a picture of what actually happened and that was quite forensic.”
When presenter Richard Madeley asked her after the interview what she thought of the prince, she replied cautiously: ‘I thought he had tried very hard to remember his lines…
‘He wanted us to film extra bits as well, he wanted to expand on the Pizza Express stuff and things like that, and it was a dilemma as a journalist whether he would add things that he wanted at the end.
“But he was happy with the interview. After the interview he gave us a tour of the palace and even invited us to come back again.”
She indicated that the interview could have been damaging: ‘I’m concerned about the consequences of it.
“There was a fallout for his family. I worry about him, as I do for anyone who has had a status drop. But I don’t regret the interview.”
In an interview with GMB, Emily spoke about her time on the interview and candidly said that rewatching the series reminded her of the stress that comes with taking on the challenge.
She said: ‘When I watch the drama, my heart starts to race – it takes me back to when I thought ‘will I remember to ask the right questions? Can I do this?”
Actress Ruth Wilson, 42, (seen) plays Emily in the new drama, while Michael Sheen plays the role of the Duke of York
She indicated that the interview could potentially be damaging: ‘I’m concerned about the consequences of it’
Emily continued: ‘There was a fallout for his family. I worry about him, as I do for anyone who has had a status drop. But I don’t regret the interview.’
To support her position, she added: “But nothing has been decided yet about Epstein’s victims.”
Amazon Prime released the trailer for its upcoming drama A Very Royal Scandal on Wednesday, following the announcement of when the series will hit the streamer.
The three-part series will premiere exclusively on Prime Video in the UK, US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand on September 19.
It comes just five months after rival streaming platform Netflix’s version, which launched on April 5.
The trailer sees Wilson’s Emily pursuing the story that would make her a global name and destroy the prince’s reputation at a pivotal moment in British history.
Before the interview, the Duke of York joked: “I’m going to throw this completely overboard.”
He adds in a voice-over: ‘I’ve been warned about you. You have a bit of a reputation.’
Emily replies rudely, sitting across from him, “Well, for your sake, I’ll try to behave.”
Then it moves on to the interview and its aftermath, with Emily saying, “I was just hoping to ask the right questions.”
The upcoming series from Amazon MGM Studios will focus much more on Emily, who serves as an executive producer, while the Netflix series Scoop focused on Prince Andrew.
An Amazon spokesperson confirmed that the series will “follow Emily Maitlis’ professional and personal journey as a journalist at Newsnight, culminating in her acclaimed interview with Prince Andrew.”
A press release continued: ‘A Very Royal Scandal follows Emily and Prince Andrew’s actions in the lead-up to the interview, the groundbreaking event itself and the many questions it raised that would change their lives forever.’
Ruth (left) will play the role of journalist Emily
She added of her reaction to Prince Andrew’s behaviour: ‘I realised early on that he would be candid in his answers. We never assumed guilt and it was an hour of his own words’
When presenter Richard Madeley asked her after the interview what she thought of the prince, she replied cautiously: ‘I thought he had tried very hard to remember his lines…’
Emily and Ruth are pictured at a screening of the series in New York on Monday night
In the first episode, Prince Andrew tries to prove his innocence while finding himself in the middle of an international scandal, while Newsnight presenter Emily does everything she can to get an interview with him.
The second part deals with the interview, but the meeting takes several turns that Emily and the Newsnight team did not expect.
In the third episode, Prince Andrew faces the consequences for himself, his family and the royal business, while Emily ponders her reputation and the future of her career.
The three-part series will premiere exclusively on Prime Video in the UK, US, on September 19, CanadaAustralia and New Zealand.
