Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor called his teenage nephew William a ‘liar’ who is ‘full of bull’ before joking about the young prince meeting ‘beautiful women’, according to a lip reader.
The relationship between the pair has come under renewed scrutiny following the fallout from the Epstein scandal and Andrew’s arrest, with William said to have pushed the King to take decisive action against the disgraced former duke.
Tensions between the pair were already obvious when they attended the Duchess of Kent’s funeral last September, with William edging away from Andrew on the steps of Westminster Cathedral and trying to avoid engaging in conversation.
Now it appears that their uneasy relationship could date back much further, with footage from Sandringham during Christmas 2000 revealing an awkward conversation between Andrew and his nephew, who was 18 at the time.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, lip reader Nicola Hickling claims the young Prince of Wales seemed to be telling his uncle about life at school, with Prince Philip making up the party.
The trio looked jovial and laughed as they chatted, with Andrew allegedly telling William: ‘You’re a liar… and your friends as well.’
Then, interrupting William’s reply, according to the lip reader, he added: ‘I’ll tell you what, you talk some bull.’
It prompted more laughter from the other two, with the disgraced duke reportedly adding: ‘You’ll meet beautiful women for fifty days… you will meet beautiful women.’
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor told an 18-year-old Prince William that ‘he will meet beautiful women’, according to a lip reader
To this, the young prince nodded. Nicola said that afterwards, Andrew added: ‘Stop, he’s alright, come with me.’
Replying, William used air quotation marks – and Andrew laughed once again.
‘Was that the boss at school?’ William then asked, according to the lip reader.
‘Why… why did you play in London?’ Andrew allegedly replied, while Philip apparently said: ‘Looks awful.’
‘I don’t know why you did it, disgusting,’ Andrew continued – which sparked more laughter from his nephew.
Seemingly concluding the chat, the disgraced Duke then allegedly said: ‘You have been unfortunate… but you’ll learn from it.’
The cordial conversation is a far cry from where William and Andrew’s relations appear to stand today – and royal commentators believe things between them had likely been deteriorating for years.
In his latest book, Entitled, historian Andrew Lownie spoke to Palace insiders who alleged the Prince of Wales has felt animosity towards his uncle for some time.
William, his brother Prince Harry and Peter Phillips talk after a church service at Sandringham on Christmas Day in 2000
As the family gathered for Christmas at Sandringham in 2000, Andrew reportedly told Prince William he would ‘meet beautiful women’
A source close to the prince said: ‘There have been tensions between [William and Andrew] for years, partly occasioned by Andrew being rude about Kate, and William has long worked behind the scenes to evict his uncle from Royal Lodge: He thinks Andy is abusing the property and his privilege there. He also loathes Sarah Ferguson.’
They added that William ‘can’t wait for the day when Charles throws them both out’.
The source continued ‘If Charles doesn’t, I guarantee you the first thing William does when he eventually becomes king is to get them evicted.
‘William refers to Andy as a “tosser”, perhaps not as bad as the vile names his brother Harry uses.’
It comes during a turbulent time for the Royal Family, with Andrew being arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office in February.
The former prince, who recently turned 66, was detained by officers during an 8am raid on his new home at Wood Farm. He became the first senior royal to be arrested since King Charles I nearly 400 years ago.
Thames Valley Police confirmed the disgraced former prince had been taken into custody just after 10am on February 19, marking one of the worst days for the family in recent history.
In a statement put out just minutes after Andrew’s departure, Thames Valley Police said ‘a man in his sixties’ has been released under investigation – as images showed how the royal seemed to be trying to evade photographers following his bruising day in the cells.
Wide-eyed and with his hands clasped in front of him, Andrew cut a lonely figure as he ditched his traditional suit and tie attire in favour of a shirt and cardigan.
Police added that searches being conducted in Norfolk, relating to Andrew’s new residence at Wood Farm have concluded.
It is understood Andrew was arrested in relation to allegations that he passed sensitive information to paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein while acting as a trade envoy for the British government.
The King issued an unprecedented statement confirming his ‘wholehearted support and co-operation’ with the investigation into Andrew just hours after he was detained, with Buckingham Palace understood not to have known the former duke would be arrested.
The statement said: ‘I have learned with the deepest concern the news about Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and suspicion of misconduct in public office.
‘What now follows is the full, fair and proper process by which this issue is investigated in the appropriate manner and by the appropriate authorities. In this, as I have said before, they have our full and wholehearted support and co-operation.
‘Let me state clearly: the law must take its course.’
