Ex-Prince Andrew Set to Retain Major Honour Despite Epstein Links

The former Duke of York retains one of his last remaining honours despite a torrent of fresh scandal — as Netflix is said to be circling for a dramatic new episode of "The Crown".

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor will keep the Freedom of the City of London — one of the last honours still attached to his increasingly tarnished name — after a review by the City of London Corporation concluded that the ancient distinction cannot legally be stripped from him.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor attends the funeral of Katharine, Duchess of Kent at Westminster Cathedral on 16 September 2025 in London, England. | Source: Getty Images

The finding, confirmed to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, has provoked fury among members of the public, arriving as the disgraced former prince finds himself engulfed in yet another wave of damaging headlines.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor attends the funeral of The Duchess of Kent at Westminster Cathedral on 16 September 2025 in London, England. | Source: Getty Images

Mountbatten-Windsor received the Freedom — which carries the ceremonial right to drive sheep across London Bridge — in 2012, not through any personal merit, but by virtue of his father Prince Philip having been a Freeman.

Under the rules governing the honour, a Freedom conferred by patrimony constitutes a legal right and is not subject to review by the corporation's elected members.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor presents Operational Service medals to the 4th Battalion, The Yorkshire Regiment, at York Racecourse on 17 May 2012 in York, England. | Source: Getty Images

In a statement, a spokesperson for the authority said, "Applications via patrimony are not considered by our elected members. We have carefully considered whether it is possible to remove a Freedom granted by patrimony and understand that we are not able to do so."

The honour is regularly awarded to distinguished figures. Sir Lenny Henry and Cate Blanchett are among its more celebrated recent recipients.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor waves as he takes part in the Diamond Jubilee Pageant on the River Thames on 3 June 2012 in London, England. | Source: Getty Images

The news was met with swift and emphatic condemnation online. "Sorry pardon WHAT?" wrote one stunned commenter. "Disgraceful," fumed another. A third was rather more forthright, declaring, "He must go in the Prison for 45 years with Fergie."

One commenter took particular issue with the ceremonial nature of the honour itself, adding, "It's an insult to sheep. Even sheep would feel embarrassed being seen with him on London Bridge."

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor rides on horseback down The Mall during Trooping The Colour 2018 on 9 June in London, England. | Source: Getty Images

The retention of the Freedom is a rare point of continuity for a man who has otherwise seen his public standing collapse entirely.

King Charles III stripped Mountbatten-Windsor of his royal titles, styles, and honours last year, following the emergence of further details concerning his long association with convicted paedophile and financier Jeffrey Epstein, who died in 2019.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor at the traditional Easter Sunday Mattins Service at St. George's Chapel on April 20, 2025, in Windsor, England. | Source: Getty Images

In February, Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested after documents within the so-called Epstein Files suggested he may have passed on sensitive trade information. He spent 11 hours in custody before being released under investigation. He has denied any wrongdoing.

The scandal, however, shows no sign of abating.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor at St. George's Chapel at the Easter Mattins Service on 31 March 2024 in England. | Source: Getty Images

Last Sunday, the United States Department of Justice published a photograph — drawn from the 180,000 images released under the Epstein Files Transparency Act — that appears to show a man bearing a strong resemblance to the former Duke of York seated with a young blonde woman on his lap.

The man in the image wears a blue shirt and a grey hooded jacket, his arms around the woman.

A photo believed to show Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor with a young woman at Jeffrey Epstein's New York home. | Source: X/ShakeLS

A second photograph, uncovered by The Telegraph, shows the same man with a different young woman standing behind him, her arms around his neck. Both women's faces have been redacted.

Both images appear to have been taken in the New York dining room of Epstein's Manhattan townhouse — a property Mountbatten-Windsor is known to have visited for a week-long stay in December 2010.

A photo believed to show Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor with a young woman at Jeffrey Epstein's New York home. | Source: X/ShakeLS

In his now-notorious 2019 Newsnight interview, the former prince claimed he had made that trip only because he was "too honourable" not to say goodbye to Epstein in person.

Documents subsequently disclosed by the DoJ tell a rather different story, showing the pair spent the visit socialising and remained in contact long afterwards.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and Jeffrey Epstein | Source: X/New York Post

And as though the real-world drama were not sufficient, reports have emerged that Netflix is in "advanced talks" with "The Crown" creator Peter Morgan over a special episode charting Mountbatten-Windsor's dramatic downfall — a development that has not gone without comment from royal observers.

Royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams told the Daily Express, "Reports that Netflix is engaged in talks with Peter Morgan, creator of The Crown, to revive the series for a special featuring the downfall of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor prove, if true, that the series is really about sensation."

He was pointed in his assessment of Morgan's apparent change of heart.

"Could this be the same person who 'wanted to remain a careful distance from where we are now', as he told The Hollywood Reporter?" Fitzwilliams asked, noting that the creator appeared to have been "tempted by the deal" and had "conveniently jettisoned his so-called rules".

Fitzwilliams acknowledged that the story had been "excruciating for the Royal Family" and noted that two dramatised versions of the Newsnight interview already exist. Whilst he fully expected any such episode to attract an enormous audience, he argued that "The Crown" — for all its acclaimed production values — amounts, at its core, to a knocking job.

The episode, he was careful to note, is far from over.