Prince Andrew could be set for new public humiliation when the National Portrait Gallery snaps up an embarrassing photograph, according to reports.

The showpiece art gallery on Trafalgar Square could display a picture of the 64-year-old’s disastrous 2019 interview with BBC Newsnight, when he was famously left squirming by presenter Emily Maitlis as he struggled to explain his past interactions with Jeffrey Epstein.

The shock new addition to the collection would immortalise the interview – widely considered the worst in royal history – for the National Portrait Gallery’s millions of visitors every year. It follows the recent Netflix film ‘Scoop‘ about the TV clash starring Gillian Anderson and Rufus Sewell, and another upcoming three-part Amazon Prime series named ‘A Very Royal Scandal’ due for release next month.







Gallery bosses have been mulling the inclusion of the picture for around six months
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Image:

Getty Images)

Kate, Princess of Wales is officially the patron of the National Portrait Gallery – but she does not have any say over what is on display. According to sources speaking to the MailOnline, gallery bosses will make a decision soon after holding six months of private talks, and are thought to be waiting for a new chief curator to be appointed before they give the go-ahead.

The image has been looked over by the gallery’s curatorial team after being offered as a gift by photographer Mark Harrison, who already has images on display in the publicly-funded gallery. Royal commentator Margaret Holder told the newspaper that the gallery showing the photo would become a “symbol of his disgrace [and] of his downfall as the son of a monarch, the brother of a monarch and a father”.

A National Portrait Gallery spokesperson told the Mirror: “The photograph has not been acquired for the Gallery’s Collection. The photograph has been offered to the Gallery as a gift by the photographer and the offer is being considered via our standard acquisitions process.”

It comes as Prince Andrew is said to have picked up a bizarre new hobby as he continues to refuse King Charles’ demands to leave the Royal Lodge. With no royal duties to perform since being stripped of his titles in 2022, the 64-year-old Duke is now reported to be passing time with a few choice hobbies, including horse riding around Windsor Castle mews and playing golf. But he is also said to have developed a more unconventional hobby – watching live plane traffic from around the world on a projector screen. Andrew has “become obsessed by the app beloved of planespotter nerds”, according to Richard Kay.