The royal formerly known as Prince Andrew, Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, has spent recent years under intense scrutiny.

His ties to Jeffrey Epstein, his reaction to public accusations, and growing pressure from the palace placed him at the center of ongoing controversy. That pressure peaked this year when King Charles formally removed his prince title and shifted him out of royal life in an effort to protect the monarchy’s reputation.

Virginia Giuffre has always been a key figure in Andrew’s downfall. As Andrew tries to adjust to life without royal status or public duties, new footage featuring Virginia brings her account back to focus and underscores how closely Andrew remains tied to this controversy.

Virginia Giuffre said she felt like a “toy” for the former Prince Andrew

Previously unseen interview footage with Virginia aired on BBC Panorama on Tuesday, November 4, nearly one week after Andrew lost his title. The clip, filmed in 2019, showed Virginia speaking emotionally about her time around Andrew and Epstein.

“I was a toy. I was there to be passed around,” she said in the footage. “But I was still a human being with feelings and emotion and sadness. And to know that this man had daughters, that he was still capable of abusing me. It just does not make sense.”

Virginia died (allegedly) by suicide earlier this year. In the interview, she spoke directly about the history between her and Andrew and challenged his continued denials. Her posthumous memoir later expanded on her experiences and kept public focus on the case.

“He knows what happened, I know what happened,” Virginia said. “And there is only one of us telling the truth.”

After Virginia’s claims became public, Andrew sat for a BBC Newsnight interview with Emily Maitlis. He said he had “no recollection” of ever meeting Virginia, despite a photo showing them together. Public backlash grew intense, and Andrew eventually stepped away from royal duties.

Virginia later filed a civil lawsuit in 2021, and the two reached a settlement in 2022. Interest in the case rose again after Virginia’s memoir was released following her death and emails between Andrew and Epstein resurfaced.

King Charles ultimately removed Andrew’s title and instructed him to leave Royal Lodge in late October. Buckingham Palace confirmed he would move to private housing and expressed sympathy for abuse survivors.

With the release of this footage, Virginia’s voice remains at the center of a scandal Andrew continues to deny as he lives outside public royal life.