Prince William's patience is running thin

Prince Andrew was reportedly asked not to attend the pre-Christmas lunch hosted by King Charles after the Duke of York was linked to an alleged Chinese spy late last year.

Some unconfirmed reports also claimed that Prince William had objected to his presence at the event which is hosted in honor of royal family members, although the Prince of Wales and his wife Kate Middleton had themselves skipped the lunch.

Royal experts think there are tension between William and his uncle Andrew as the future king sees him as threat to the "royal brand".

In July last year, royal expert Jennie Bond told OK!: "I think William was quick to grasp that Andrew is toxic to the royal brand. And, in a pretty ruthless and business like way, I think William has pushed for Andrew to be excluded and to stay excluded from the official royal circle."

Andrew, who has been stripped of most of his royal titles due to his association with Jeffery Epstein, is once again in the news for lying about his last contact with the former American financier. 

The new scandal is expected to further strain his relations with Prince William, who will become the king after Charles, Andrew's elder brother. 

Andrew settled a civil lawsuit with Virginia Giuffre in 2022 for an undisclosed sum, and has denied wrongdoing.

Giuffre's lawsuit, filed under New York's Child Victims Act, alleged that she was forced to have several sexual encounters with Andrew in the early 2000s at the age of 17, after being sex trafficked by the American financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Andrew denied Giuffre's claims.

Citing newly revealed court documents, a report said that the younger brother of King Charles remained in contact with Jeffrey Epstein for two months longer than he previously claimed, newly revealed court documents show.

The Duke of York told the convicted sex offender they should "keep in close touch" in February 2011, despite stating he had cut all ties in December 2010.

According to GB News, the communications emerged in a filing by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which is defending an appeal by former Barclays Bank boss Jes Staley.

Prince Andrew said that his last contact with Epstein was during their infamous meeting in New York's Central Park in December 2010.

"In court filings, an email from February 27, 2011, shows Epstein writing to the Duke: "Jes staley will be in London on next tue afternoon, if you have time".

GB News reported that Prince Andrew responded by confirming the date and adding: "Keep in close touch and well play some more soon".

The publication wrote that these new revelations directly contradict Prince Andrew's statements during his 2019 infamous Newsnight interview, where he discussed his friendship with the convicted paedophile.

The Duke of York insisted he had no contact with Epstein after their December 2010 meeting in New York.