Via – Fox News

The British monarchy is facing more drama these days than a season of “The Crown.”

From sex scandals and family feuds to speculation about holiday plans, experts tell Fox News that the screaming headlines surrounding the royal family have run the gamut from salacious to downright staggering, but that not every royal is to blame.

Except of course for Prince Andrew.

Prince Andrew, the second son of Queen Elizabeth II, struggled to defend himself during a disastrous interview with the BBC about his relationship with the late disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, who was accused of sex trafficking.

On Wednesday, the Duke of York announced he’s asked the monarch, 93, if he can “step back” from his public duties.

Royal expert and author Leslie Carroll, author of “Royal Pains: A Rogues’ Gallery of Brats, Brutes, and Bad Seeds,” told Fox News it’s undoubtedly a difficult time for Elizabeth, who is faced with one of the worst scandals for the royal family in its modern history.

“I feel a bit sad that at this stage in her life… the queen can never relax her hands on the reins of the monarchy and completely trust the younger generation to carry on,” Carroll told Fox News. “[She] is said to be ‘disappointed’ by Andrew… He’s always been a wild one, but he went off the rails by associating with Epstein, to begin with.

“The queen will continue to ‘neither complain nor explain’ because she was raised to do so; and with ‘duty first’ as a core belief,” Carroll continued. “[She]… needs to keep the country together as its moral spine, demonstrating the ‘there will always be an England’ sentiment that has kept Britain’s monarchy the longest-running show in history — still going after over a millennium.

Royal historian and blogger Marlene Koenig told Fox News that Andrew’s brother Prince Charles, who is next in line for the throne, was involved in the decision to have the 59-year-old step back from public duties “for the foreseeable future.”

“I think there is only so much that the queen can do,” Carroll explained. “Charles is the future king and he has been involved in all the conversations about Andrew. There is no doubt that his voice was heard in the decision to have Andrew step down as a working royal. I won’t be surprised if more decisions follow after he returns from New Zealand… We do not know how this story will end… more legal issues for Andrew? Or will he be further pushed gently into the good night?”

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