Revealed: Bombshell picture of Andrew lying on five women’s laps was taken in one of the Royal Family’s most treasured rooms… as ex-prince breaks cover for horse ride

A forlorn-looking Andrew broke cover today – hours after a bombshell photograph was released showing him lying on five women’s laps.

Puffing out his cheeks, the 65-year-old was seen in Windsor for his usual Saturday morning horse ride.

It comes as questions today swirl over who the mystery six women are with him in the picture released on Friday night as part of the Epstein files.

The snap was taken in one of the Royal Family’s most treasured rooms at the Sandringham Estate where the likes of the King, William and Kate will often watch TV, play games or enjoy afternoon tea there over Christmas. 

The former prince is captured wearing a black suit and bow tie, as he lies across five women, smiling with his face near the bare legs of one.

Behind him stands Epstein’s grinning pimp Ghislaine Maxwell, alongside another unidentified woman who has had a black box put over her face by the US Department of Justice. 

Despite there being no context to the newly-released picture, it raises fresh questions over what the disgraced royal knew about Epstein and the billionaire paedophile’s sex-trafficking girlfriend as he brought them into the Royal Family’s inner sanctum.

For the room has not only a great deal of history, but is one of the family’s most important at Christmas. 

The saloon room, located at the entrance to the nineteenth century house, is where the King hosts sometimes more than 40 members of the family to watch his pre-recorded speech – a tradition dating back to the times of his mother Queen Elizabeth II.

And the annual ritual is as much a part of the royals’ festive traditions as the dinner beforehand, as members of the family head there to reflect on the year that has passed as well as to unwind and enjoy each others company. 

The room overlooks the grand entrance hall on the King’s private Norfolk estate and has always been a gathering place for the royals, who often watch TV, play games or enjoy afternoon tea there. 

But now it will also be known as the room where Andrew hammed it up for the camera.

The US government released the picture as part of the Epstein files, a trove of 300,000 documents that revealed the depraved scenes at the financier’s mansions and included countless images of naked young women – plus Andrew partying it up at Sandringham. 

Just visible to the left of Maxwell in the snap is the concealed door to the room in Sandringham House where George V broadcast his first Christmas radio message in 1932. 

It is not clear when the photo of Andrew in front of the fireplace in Sandringham’s saloon room was taken. 

But it is known that Andrew hosted a surprise birthday for the now-jailed socialite at the King’s private country Norfolk retreat in December 2000.

Among the party was Tom Pritzker, chairman of Hyatt Hotels, is linked to the former duke in a most embarrassing way. 

Now 75, the Chicago-based businessman was accused – like Andrew – of having sex with Virginia Giuffre. 

Ms Giuffre claimed she was the victim of trafficking and abuse by Epstein and his powerful associates when she was a teenager. Like the former duke, Mr Pritzker has strongly denied the claims.

Less than three months after the hunting lodge snap, Andrew posed with his arm around 17-year-old Virginia’s waist for a photograph that would ultimately lead to his downfall. 

In October, The Mail on Sunday published the shooting party photograph. Police in Paris had obtained the image while investigating claims that Epstein associate, French model agency boss Jean-Luc Brunel, who killed himself while awaiting trial for rape, recruited under-age girls for Epstein including three 12-year-old sisters. 

The triplets were presented to him ‘as a surprise birthday present’.

Following his suicide in a New York prison cell in 2019, Epstein’s £8million apartment in central Paris was raided by detectives.

A police source said of the photograph: ‘Prosecutors were attempting to build up a clear picture of Epstein’s contacts, including those in the United Kingdom. It is for this reason that it [the Sandringham photo] was obtained.’

The former prince would go on to describe the stay at Sandringham as a ‘straightforward shooting weekend’ in his disastrous BBC Newsnight interview with Emily Maitlis in 2019. 

Standing next to Andrew in the photograph, wearing a tweed cap, is Charles Butter, one of the late Queen’s godsons, who accompanied Maxwell to society events in London. 

Sandringham House has great historical significance for the Royal Family, with the first Christmas broadcast by Charles’ great-grandfather, King George V, taking place at the Norfolk estate in 1932.

After being persuaded by then Prime Minister, Ramsay MacDonald, to do address communities in a bid to foster a sense of community as well as reach the Commonwealth, the monarch’ broadcast the message to 20 million people. 

He began the speech from inside a special small private room Sandringham House with words written by Rudyard Kipling, ‘I speak now from my home and from my heart to you all.’

In the left hand corner of the black-and-white snap the hidden door can be seen that leads to the room where he recorded the historic broadcast.

Despite the monarch shuffling papers slightly too loudly as well as a wicker chair collapsing, it was a major hit.

Touched by the numerous letters and telegrams congratulating him, King George decided to transform what was intended to be a one-off event into an annual tradition. 

Today, listeners and viewers tune in from around the globe to watch the monarch reflect on current issues and concerns as well as the meaning of Christmas Day while the Royals watch from the Sandringham saloon room.

Aside from a stay at Sandringham, Epstein and Maxwell accompanied Andrew to Royal Ascot in 2000 and Balmoral in 1999, newly-released photographs have confirmed.

Andrew stepped down from royal duties in 2019 but the publication of Ms Giuffre’s posthumous memoir, and the US government’s release of documents from Epstein’s estate, brought more scrutiny over his relationship with the financier.

The former prince has been dogged by allegations that he sexually assaulted then 17-year-old Virginia Giuffre after she was trafficked by Epstein. He has always denied the accusations. 

It is now six years since the FBI asked Andrew to submit to questioning as a ‘witness’ to help its investigation into the crimes of Epstein.

In the 2000s, Andrew spent weeks as a guest at Epstein’s ‘House of Sin’ villa in Florida where children were forced to dress in schoolgirl outfits and have under-age sex with the paedophile American financier.

Andrew has always vehemently denied accusations by Mrs Giuffre that she was forced to have sex with him three times.

In 2022, he paid her an undisclosed sum reported to be £12million to settle her civil claim for sex assault without any admission of wrongdoing.

Andrew, who stayed with Epstein at his mansions in New York, Florida and the Caribbean, and flew on the billionaire’s private jet nicknamed the ‘Lolita Express’, has always insisted he never saw, witnessed or suspected ‘any behaviour of the sort’ that led to Epstein’s arrest and conviction for child sex offences.

Some of the new photos give a stomach-churning glimpse into the ‘décor’ of Epstein’s homes, which were covered in artworks featuring naked girls. One chilling and unexplained photo features a naked baby in a bathroom sink.

After Epstein died in 2019, Andrew made various pledges to help US investigators, but they accused him of stalling. American prosecutors made a public statement lambasting Andrew for giving ‘zero co-operation’. Then they took the drastic step of asking the British Government to facilitate a formal interview with the then duke.

The Home Office was supposed to be ‘processing’ the 2019 request but nothing ever happened. The former duke has resisted calls from victims of Epstein to voluntarily submit to FBI questioning.

He was ‘at least a witness’ to the investigation into Epstein’s crimes, former US attorney general William Barr said recently. There was no response to a request for comment from Andrew.

Other pictures released on Friday also show Andrew’s ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, posing for a photograph with someone on the street and talking to a woman while sitting on a sofa.

In both images, she appears to be wearing the same outfit, although it is unclear if the photographs were taken on the same day.