What the former prince Andrew’s arrest means for the Royal Family
The Global Story
BBC
3.8 • 668 Ratings
🗓️ 20 February 2026
⏱️ 27 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the former prince and brother to King Charles, was arrested by British police on Thursday on suspicion of misconduct in public office.
The arrest came after police said they were assessing a complaint that Andrew allegedly shared confidential material with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Andrew has consistently denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein.
We’re joined by BBC Royal Correspondent Sean Coughlan to discuss what Andrew’s arrest means for the future of the British monarchy.
Producers: Sam Chantarasak and Xandra Ellin.
Executive producer: James Shield.
Senior news editor: China Collins.
Photo: Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, leaves Aylsham Police Station. Credit: Phil Noble/Reuters.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, podcasts. |
| 0:06.0 | It's probably not how the former Prince Andrew planned to spend his 66th birthday. |
| 0:12.1 | On Thursday evening, in the English countryside, two dark SUVs made their way through the rain as they left a police station. |
| 0:20.2 | And illuminated by camera flashes, Andrew appeared to be trying to lie down in the back seat. |
| 0:25.9 | Earlier in the day, he had been arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office. |
| 0:32.5 | And although the police have let Andrew go home, he is still under investigation. |
| 0:38.7 | The arrest came after police said they were assessing a complaint that Andrew allegedly shared confidential material |
| 0:44.2 | with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Now, to be clear, being arrested in and of itself |
| 0:50.3 | is not an indication of guilt, and at the time of recording this on Thursday, no charges |
| 0:55.8 | have been brought. For his part, Andrew has consistently denied any wrongdoing in relation to |
| 1:01.5 | Epstein. Still, his arrest is the latest development in an unprecedented scandal that has sent |
| 1:08.4 | shockwaves through the British royal family and intensified scrutiny on how his brother, King Charles, will deal with the fallout. |
| 1:17.0 | From the BBC, I'm Asma Khalid in Washington, D.C. |
| 1:20.5 | And today on the global story, why was Andrew arrested? |
| 1:23.7 | And what does this mean for the survival of the monarchy? |
| 1:37.0 | Sean, it's nice to meet you and have you on the show. Can I have you introduce yourself to listeners? Yeah, I'm Sean Cocklin and I'm the BBC's Royal Correspondent. Well, why don't we |
| 1:42.2 | dive right into this latest news? |
| 1:50.5 | Sean, can you put into scale how big of a deal this news of Andrew is? |
| 1:55.4 | How does it compare to other royal stories, royal scandals that you've covered? |
| 2:05.0 | Well, I think it is pretty seismic and probably one of the biggest news stories to hit the Royal Family for many, many, many decades, really. |
| 2:09.8 | I mean, it's a story which has been in the making for decades. The links between Andrew Mountbatten, Windsor and Jeffrey Epstein go back for more than 25 years. |
| 2:16.8 | But like a slow burning novel that suddenly |
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