Prince Andrew cancelled a lavish birthday party for his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, as the couple continue to be rocked by the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.
Fergie, who has lost her title as the Duchess of York following intense scrutiny surrounding the pair, had been due to celebrate her 66th birthday last Wednesday.
However, Andrew called off the celebration after facing renewed pressure to relinquish his royal titles — including Duke of York and his position as a member of the Order of the Garter, The Sun reported.
This latest development in the long-running controversy comes just days ahead of the release of a memoir by Virginia Giuffre, the late alleged victim to whom Andrew paid millions in a civil sexual assault settlement.
Last night, Giuffre’s brother urged the King to go even further and strip Andrew of his princely title.
He told BBC Newsnight: “We would call on the King to potentially go ahead and take out the prince in the Andrew.”
Announcing the removal of his titles on Friday, Andrew continued to deny all accusations made against him.
Andrew said in a statement: “In discussion with The King, and my immediate and wider family, we have concluded the continued accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty and the Royal Family.
"I have decided, as I always have, to put my duty to my family and country first. I stand by my decision five years ago to stand back from public life.
"With His Majesty's agreement, we feel I must now go a step further. I will therefore no longer use my title or the honours which have been conferred upon me.
"As I have said previously, I vigorously deny the accusations against me."
Andrew reportedly paid £12 million to settle the legal case brought by Virginia in 2022.
Last month, several charities dropped Ferguson as a patron after an email from 2011 revealed that she called Epstein her "supreme friend" and seemed to apologise for her public criticism of him.
Having kept the courtesy royal divorcee title Sarah, Duchess of York, following her divorce from Prince Andrew, she will now revert to her maiden name of Ferguson.
Prince Andrew’s daughters remain in the royal fold following his move to give up his titles and honours in the wake of the Epstein scandal.
The titles of Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie are unaffected, with both Andrew and the King thought to want to ensure they would retain them.
