The royal family is in crisis mode amid mounting fears for the Queen, who has been struggling to deal with the scandal surrounding her son Prince Andrew, and her husband Prince Philip’s declining health.
Amid the massive backlash that has surrounded Prince Andrew’s TV interview with the BBC about his involvement in the Jeffrey Epstein sex scandal, members of the royal house are increasingly anxious about the monarch’s health and wellbeing.
WATCH: Prince Andrew denies sweaty dancing with Virginia Roberts due to ‘peculiar’ condition
‘The Queen is under strain,’ a source told UK newspaper The Sun. ‘She’s telling everyone she’s fine because that’s what she does.
‘But she’s 93 and it’s obvious this is going to take a real toll, so everyone is incredibly concerned.’
The House of Windsor is facing its biggest crisis since the breakdown of Prince Charles and Diana’s marriage – but just months ago things were on the up, creating a sense of radical instability that has left senior royals reeling.
‘A couple of years ago she seemed very content,’ a source told the paper. ‘Charles and Camilla were sorted, William and Kate were doing well and then Harry finding a wife. But now her problems are piling up, both inside and outside the family.
‘She’s trying to hold a country together post-Brexit and the Scottish independence referendum.
‘And now the crisis over Prince Andrew follows all the heartache over her grandsons.
‘It’s certainly going to be a strange Christmas for her — and does she really deserve this after all she’s done?’
Adding to the drama, Her Majesty’s usual rock, husband Prince Philip, has not been by her side during the drama.
‘A few weeks ago Philip had a bit of a wobble and hasn’t felt so energetic.
‘He has been living quietly at Sandringham, where he spends most of his time reading and pottering about.
‘Until recently he has been very active — carriage riding, fishing at Balmoral and driving around royal estates — although he no longer drives on public roads following his crash in January.
‘His mind is as sharp as ever. However the sad reality is that the Queen is more isolated. They are both making an extraordinary personal sacrifice for the country.’
Alleged former teen sex trafficking victim Virginia Roberts claimed she was forced to have sex with Andrew by Jeffrey Epstein and said they danced together that night at Tramp nightclub in London.
She noted the Duke was sweaty and smelly, but in Andrew’s BBC Newsnight interview, bizarrely said that a ‘peculiar medical condition’ brought on by being shot at in the Falklands War meant he could not have ‘sweated profusely.’
‘I’ve no recollection of meeting her. In fact I’m convinced I was never in Tramp with her. There are a number of things wrong with that story, one of which is that I don’t know where the bar is in Tramp. I don’t drink,’ he told interviewer Emily Maitlis. ‘I don’t think I’ve ever bought a drink in Tramp.
‘There’s a slight problem with the sweating because I have peculiar medical condition which is that I don’t sweat, or didn’t at the time, because I had suffered an overdose of adrenaline in the Falklands War when I was shot at . . . it was impossible for me to sweat.’
The Prince’s performance during the interview has been widely mocked, with the chat described as a ‘train wreck’ that has done profound damage to the image of the monarchy.
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