Prince Andrew has been seen publicly for the first time in months following his dramatic fall from grace in light of the Jeffrey Esptein scandal.
The Duke of York, 60, was pictured packing cupcakes into gift bags for the Thames Hospice in Windsor, which provides care for people with life-limiting illnesses.
The photographs, posted on Instagram by his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson’s assistant Antonia Marshall, show the prince looking relaxed and cheerful.
It is one of the first times the monarch has been pictured publicly since he stepped down from royal duties after his disastrous appearance on BBC Newsnight in November.
The car-crash interview saw Andrew express little sympathy for the victims of convicted sex offender Esptein, who killed himself in prison awaiting charges of sex trafficking. The duke faced backlash for failing to apologise for befriending the disgraced financier and describing his behaviour as ‘unbecoming’.
Prince Andrew has only been seen in public a handful of times since then, and was last pictured in January, when he attended a Sunday service at St Mary the Virgin Church in Norfolk with the Queen.
A caption accompanying the latest photographs of the duke said he was making care packages with the duchess amid the coronavirus pandemic.
‘The York family are a wonderful and steadfast unit and through this crisis, are continuously helping others’ the post said.
It drew some criticism, with Royal biographer Tom Bower accusing Andrew of exploiting the crisis to ‘creep back into the spotlight’.
The prince appeared on Newsnight to defend himself against claims made by Virgina Giuffre, who claims she was trafficked by Epstein and also alleges the duke had sex with her on three separate occasions, including when she was 17, still a minor under US law.
Prince Andrew has strenuously denied the allegations and insists he has no recollection of ever meeting Ms Giuffre. He has faced calls to talk to the FBI and US prosecutors, who are still investigating Epstein.
The duke was due to be promoted to admiral on his 60th birthday, in line with a longstanding policy that sees senior royals treated as serving military members.
But Buckingham Palace has already said he has asked to defer the promotion until he is able to fully resume royal duties.
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