OUT IN THE COLD

As Prince Andrew’s legal woes mount, the queen has acted swiftly to banish him from the royal fold

- NICI DE WET

BANNED from the balcony, barred from public events, stripped of his title and patronages, and so thoroughly and absolutely shut out from the fold that he’s probably never going to find a way back in.

Prince Andrew’s fall from grace has been a long time coming and his final axing from the British royal family has been brutal. The last time someone was so practically banished from The Firm was when the queen’s uncle, Edward, abdi cated to marry divorcee Wallis Simpson in the 1930s.

Of course, the reason for Andrew being kicked out is far more sordid than anything the royals have ever had to deal with.

A US judge recently ruled that one of the victims of convicted paedophile and sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein can pursue a civil case against the prince. The victim, Virginia Giuffre (née Roberts) can now take legal action against Andrew, who she’s accused of having sex with her while she was still a minor.

Andrew has consistently denied her claims and tried all manner of legal manoeuvring to prevent Virginia from pursuing legal action. But Judge Lewis Kaplan’s ruling put paid to any attempt to have the case thrown out.

The trial – if he and Virginia don’t settle out of court – will effectively thrust the life and sex habits of the 61-year-old father of Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice into the spotlight.

It’s for this reason that the queen acted with a decisiveness that came as no surprise to royal experts.