Princess Beatrice “will be upset and upset” by Netflix’s dramatization of Prince Andrew’s Newsnight interview and her involvement in it, an expert has claimed.
Netflix’s Scoop, starring Gillian Anderson, Billie Piper and Rufus Sewell, follows how the BBC obtained the interview, widely considered the most disastrous in true history.
Royal expert Jennie Bond, who was a BBC royal correspondent for 14 years, said Prince Andrew’s eldest daughter will fear the drama, which will be available to stream from Friday.
speaking to OK!The expert explained that the premiere of the dramatization “will convey the entire story” to an even wider audience.
She said: ‘This is very bad news for Andrew and indeed his whole family.
Princess Beatrice (pictured June 2022) attended a negotiation meeting between Prince Andrew and the BBC, a producer has claimed.
“Beatrice, in particular, will no doubt be upset and upset that her involvement in preparing for and following up on the interview will now become much more public.”
Describing how the Yorks may have “a difficult time ahead”, the expert also highlighted that Prince Andrew “won’t like” how the drama is expected to highlight how well he thought the interview had gone.
During the 60 Minutes show, Andrew was unapologetic about his friendship with convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein and denied ever knowing accuser Virgina Roberts.
Last year, a BBC producer revealed that Princess Beatrice attended a negotiation meeting with her father before the interview.
Producer McAlister said the duke had announced he had brought someone with him to the negotiations and she thought he meant a lawyer.
Writing for the Mail, the producer wrote: “To be frank, the only thing worse than talking to a potential interviewee about allegations of sexual misconduct and sex with a 17-year-old girl is having to do it in front of your daughter.
‘Princess Beatrice was polite and engaged, but, unlike her father, she was evidently eager for the meeting and was clearly there to protect his interests.
—I had heard that she was close to the Queen. I felt that the Prince’s eldest daughter was now the person who could make the difference between us getting the interview or not.
Pictured: Prince Andrew gives Emily Maitlis a tour of Buckingham Palace after finishing filming his Newsnight interview.
Keeley Hawes as Amanda Thirsk, Rufus Sewell as Prince Andrew and Charity Wakefield as Princess Beatrice in Scoop
Ms McAlister previously described how Beatrice, played by Charity Wakefield in Scoop, took notes on a clipboard at the meeting and seemed “anxious”.
In April 2023, Emily Maitlis revealed that she fears the car accident interview will “hurt” Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice, who had recently announced their engagement.
She said in a Channel 4 documentary: “It’s the first time it occurred to me that maybe he was doing it for (Princess Beatrice).
‘Your life has been hell. You had to read these headlines. You’re trying to get married. I’m going to do this to make it better for you. I don’t know if that’s true, but she crossed my mind.’
In a column for The timesEmily said she also struggled “afterwards” with how Prince Andrew’s revelations would affect her daughters, Beatrice and Eugenie.
‘How could an interview that was intended to provide answers to vulnerable young women not end up harming other vulnerable young women (her daughters) along the way?’
In retrospect, the former BBC journalist questioned whether Prince Andrew had agreed to the interview to clear his name for Beatrice’s sake, ahead of her wedding to Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi just a few months later.