One former senior courtier described the interview as "excruciating", while others said it was a "car crash" but sources close to Prince Andrew said he stood by his decision and claimed he had answered the questions with "honesty and humility". The Queen is reportedly unhappy with Prince Andrew's interview. Credit:Getty Images It came as Charles, the Prince of Wales, was urged to consider downgrading Prince Andrew's status as a working royal when he becomes king. Prince Andrew also faced questions over a £15,000 ($28,400) loan his former wife Sarah, Duchess of York, accepted from Epstein, particularly regarding whether he had a hand in arranging the loan and whether it was made before or after Prince Andrew claims to have cut off contact with the disgraced billionaire. Evidence emerged on Sunday that conflicted with his explanation for why Giuffre's claims of sex with him were wrong. In particular, his suggestion that a photograph of him with his arm around her waist could have been faked because he never wore casual clothes in London was undermined by pictures of him wearing a near-identical outfit on a night out in the capital.

Meanwhile, the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children distanced itself from Prince Andrew, former patron of its Full Stop campaign, after he said his role meant he "knew what to look for" if children were being abused. The charity told The Telegraph: "Prince Andrew was a patron of the NSPCC Full Stop Campaign, which ended in 2009." Royal insiders left little doubt on Sunday about the level of anger among Palace staff at Prince Andrew's decision to grant the BBC interview, and about the advice he was given. Disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein died in a Manhattan jail cell in August. Credit:AP One royal source said: "The statement Buckingham Palace issued said the Queen was aware of the interview but not that she approved it. It's extraordinary how this has unfolded, without any real consultation with the Palace press office or even the Queen's private office. It does seem as if the Duke of York's private office is operating in a silo, which is really quite dangerous because there is a lack of accountability there. Internally, this is being seen as a f--- up." A Palace spokesman would only refer to a previous statement that the Queen was "aware" of the interview. "We cannot comment further," she added.

One royal adviser said: "This interview was completely unprecedented in offering a royal up for one hour on one subject without any questions being off limits. "Ordinarily you would say to the BBC, 'He'll talk about X for 10 minutes but he won't talk about Y or Z.' Why didn't they insist on the duke being filmed carrying out royal duties and make the Epstein allegations a smaller part of a wider documentary?" Epstein's accuser Virginia Roberts Giuffre says Prince Andrew had sex with her. Credit:AP A source close to Prince Andrew told The Telegraph they "deliberately didn't want to do it like that because it would have looked like a set-up", but conceded the program "did not have enough focus on his work". Prince Andrew said in the interview that he had "let the side down" but failed to express any remorse for his friendship with Epstein, saying the "people I met and the opportunities I was given" through Epstein had been "useful".

Jason Stein, Prince Andrew's press secretary, left the Palace by mutual agreement last month after disagreements over the handling of the allegations. Stein made clear to friends the Newsnight interview "was not a good idea". Attention has since turned to the role of Prince Andrew's private secretary Amanda Thirsk. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video Prince Andrew is alleged to have told his staff he was "not doing Newsnight" before being persuaded by Thirsk to accept the BBC's request. For the past six years, the Cambridge University law graduate has been a director of his Pitch@Palace project, which introduces entrepreneurs to potential investors.