What actually occurred on Andrew’s notorious journey to Jeffrey Epstein’s New York townhouse: Victoria’s Secret mannequin visitor, ‘new women’ and a bunch of celebs at a ‘informal dinner’

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s trip to New York which he said was to cut ties with Jeffrey Epstein was actually a long weekend which saw the friends meet a string of celebrities including a Victoria’s Secret model, emails revealed today.

The disgraced former prince claimed in his infamous 2019 Newsnight interview that he went to the US in December 2010 to end his relationship with the financier.

The trip came two years after Epstein admitted soliciting a minor for prostitution – and Andrew stayed at the paedophile’s house, which he later admitted was ‘wrong’.

Now, more details on the visit have been found in some of the millions of documents connected to Epstein that the US Department of Justice published last Friday.

Messages released as part of the so-called Epstein files revealed there was a ‘very last-minute casual dinner’ put together for Andrew, with Woody Allen and his wife Soon-Yi Previn and journalist Katie Couric said to have been among the invitees.

Others Andrew is said to have met during the trip were Latvian model Lana Zakocela, then 21; stand-up comedian Chelsea Handler; and talk show host Charlie Rose. 

He is also thought to have seen former White House communications director George Stephanopoulos. There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing at the dinner.

Separately, it was also revealed Andrew went cap in hand to Epstein to settle a debt of $126,721 owed by the former duke’s ex-wife Sarah Ferguson to her PA of 18 years. 

One email revealed Hollywood publicist Peggy Siegal gave Andrew two copies of the film The King’s Speech during a dinner when he was staying with Epstein in 2010. 

Ms Siegal detailed some of what went on during the get together in an email sent to Epstein on December 3 – appearing to make reference to Harvey Weinstein and how he would be ‘angry’ about her lending copies of The King’s Speech to Andrew.

The disgraced movie mogul’s production house, The Weinstein Company, was behind the film.

Ms Siegal said in her message to Epstein: ‘The evening was sensational… Did you have fun? My favourite line. ‘So Andrew, tell us about the wedding. What are you wearing?’ He was not sure if I was kidding or not… and I was perfectly straight with him.

‘I did leave him two copies of ‘The King’s Speech’ (one for back-up) and begged him to let me watch him watch the film.

‘I must get them both back. Harvey will kill me if he finds out I lent them to him. Harvey is trying to get the palace (and Prince Charles) to see the film….

‘I told Andrew to say he saw the film in the theatre in New York. I will get the name of the theatre where it’s playing.

‘Please make sure Andrew does not say I lent him a DVD. Harvey will really be angry. Will talk to you tomorrow. Your table looked great and the food was delicious. xoxo Peg.’

The wedding reference is thought to relate to the marriage of Prince William and Kate, whose engagement was announced days earlier on November 16, 2010. They married on April 29, 2011.

Messages between Epstein and Ms Siegal also revealed they ordered ‘gold ballroom chairs’ and had table flower arrangements. 

A separate email to Epstein from an account on behalf of Ms Siegal showed a private screening of The King’s Speech was being arranged for Andrew in November 2010.

The email from a woman called Stephanie was sent to a redacted address and forwarded to Epstein on November 3.

Set out in four points, it said: ‘1. As per our phone conversation Prince Andrew will be in the States November 29th – December 5th.

‘2. We will get a print of The Kings Speech from Harvey Weinstein and have you host a very private, small, no press screening for Prince Andrew.

‘3. Here is a list of events for that week: Monday, November 29th is the Gotham Awards, Tuesday, November 30th is the Black Swan Premiere, Wednesday, December 1st is the All Good Things Premiere (sic). We can do it Thursday, December 2nd, 4th, or Sunday, December 5th.

‘4. Tell Prince Andrew the film and Colin Firth who portrays his grandfather is going to win the Oscar.

‘Xoxo, Peggy.’

Colin Firth won the best actor Academy Award for his portrayal of Andrew’s grandfather George VI in the film.

On December 4 – the day before Andrew and Epstein were photographed walking together through New York’s Central Park – Epstein appeared to ask for ‘new girls’.

An email to a woman called Irina asked: ‘Anyone new for tonight?’ She replied: ‘Not yet, but I’m working on that! Do you want to see [redacted] or [redacted] again?’

This came only months after Epstein had offered Andrew a meeting with a 26-year-old Russian woman called Irina for dinner in London – but it is not clear if this was the same woman, reported The Sun.

Also on December 4, Epstein and Andrew went for a shopping trip at department store Barneys and had lunch with Next Model management founder Faith Kate.

Epstein later sent a driver to pick up model Zakocela from the airport and said he would put her up for ‘one or two nights’.

Messages between Epstein and Soon-Yi show he asked her and Allen for ‘Sunday bagels’ for breakfast on December 5 before going for a walk with Andrew in Central Park.

Andrew is believed to have flown home on the evening of December 6.

Separate emails also shed new light on Andrew’s walk in Central Park with Epstein – given the former prince had gone cap in hand to Epstein to settle a debt of more than $125,000 that his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson owed to her PA of 18 years.

The infamous picture of Andrew and Epstein on December 5 came at a time when Fergie was mired in debt – but Epstein bailed her out.

Andrew told Epstein, then convicted of child sex offences, they would ‘play some more soon’ as they discussed settling her debts, one document shows.

‘It would seem we are in this together’, Andrew told him.

Fergie’s personal assistant, Johnny O’Sullivan, had been owed $126,721 in wages and the tuition costs for an MBA at Columbia University that his boss had promised to pay for.

Three months after Andrew and Epstein strolled through Central Park, the convicted sex offender brokered a deal with Mr O’Sullivan for around half the money, although he dragged his heels about paying and called Fergie’s loyal aide a ‘little sh*t’.

Fergie would later admit having Epstein pay her bills was a ‘gigantic error of judgement’.

Epstein stepped in to broker the deal with Mr O’Sullivan – and kept Andrew directly up to date.

In an email to Andrew he wrote: ‘He [Johnny] said he would take 60k in wages, pay tax and be done.. I don’t trust him at all, and a payment from me at the moment if disclosed to the press would look like a payoff for the little sh*t.’

Andrew replied: ‘I’m just as concerned for you! Don’t worry about me! It would seem we are in this together and will have to rise above it! Let me know if you want me to deal with J wages. Otherwise keep in close touch and we’ll play some more soon!!!!’.

It was signed ‘A’, for Andrew.

Epstein appears to have paid – but initially resisted.

Another email shows how Mr O’Sullivan was left waiting.

He wrote to Andrew’s private secretary Amanda Thirsk on February 7, 2011: ‘Please can you let me know what’s happening re paying off my Columbia student debt.

‘Both the Duke and Duchess have asked what’s happening but I don’t have any information to share with them.’

Around ten days later he wrote again: ‘Dear Amanda, I have expressed my concern to you that despite all our concerted efforts I still remain unpaid. The financial arrangements have been agreed directly between the Duke, the Duchess and I for some 2 months.

‘Yet from what I understand there is no plan in place to pay me the $59,933 I am now clearly owed. I agreed to reduce the amount I am owed by the Duchess in wages from $72,596 to $59,933 in order to reach an agreement with the Duke and Duchess.

‘The Duchess then emailed me, twice, to say that my offer was acceptable to both her and the Duke. I did not waive my right to receive this money lightly given the debts incurred as a result of this nonpayment and resulting struggle I have endured to try and support myself and pay for my MBA course at Columbia.

‘This is completely unacceptable to me and in conflict with the spirit of good faith by which I thought agreement bad [sic] been reached. If I am not paid what I am owed, in fill [sic], by this coming Monday I will instruct lawyers.

‘In that case I will also look at going for the full amount since my agreement to the reduced figure was given on the basis of a prompt payment. I hope it will not come to this’.

It is not known if and when it was paid – but a document discovered on Epstein’s own desk suggested it was.

A 2015 picture of Epstein’s desk showed on it was a letter that titled ‘Settlement – John O’Sullivan’.

It stated that an agreement for the reimbursement of $59,933 had been made between Mr O’Sullivan, and the former Duke and Duchess.

Another email, seen by the Telegraph, suggests that he did pay.

Epstein wrote: ‘Whatever we think of him we are going to have to deal with him one way or another.’

He added: ‘He wants to get as much money as he can, I am trying to structure something where he signs papers and they are held until his money is received, otherwise he will get the money not sign and use the money to sue.

‘He is trying to divide and conquer I hope you can deal with him as I don’t think I can do anymore my end’.

During her marriage, Fergie spent wildly on staff, holidays, parties and flowers – with no regard for settling bills.

She reportedly had debts in excess of £3.7million by 1994 and became well-known for running up huge bills in stores such as Harrods without paying.

Challenged during his 2019 Newsnight interview on his decision to stay at the home of a convicted sex offender, Andrew said: ‘It was a convenient place to stay. I mean I’ve gone through this in my mind so many times.

‘At the end of the day, with a benefit of all the hindsight that one can have, it was definitely the wrong thing to do.

‘But at the time I felt it was the honourable and right thing to do and I admit fully that my judgment was probably coloured by my tendency to be too honourable but that’s just the way it is.’

Epstein was found dead in his cell at a federal jail in Manhattan in August 2019 while he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges. His death was ruled a suicide.

Andrew has faced allegations, which he strenuously denies, that he sexually assaulted a teenage Virginia Giuffre after she was trafficked by Epstein.

He paid millions to Ms Giuffre, a woman he has claimed never to have met, to settle a civil sexual assault claim in 2022.

Andrew stepped down from royal duties in 2019 after the Newsnight interview, 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.

It led to the King officially stripping his disgraced brother of both his HRH style and his prince title.