Prince Andrew dropped as patron of Royal Philharmonic Orchestra after Epstein scandal

22 November 2019, 14:34

The Duke of York has been removed as the patron of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra following an explosive tell-all interview about his friendship with convicted sex-offender Jeffery Epstein.

A spokesperson for the orchestra said: "Following HRH The Duke of York’s announcement that he will be stepping back from public life, management representatives of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) met with Prince Andrew’s office on Thursday afternoon.

"At a subsequent meeting of the RPO Board it was decided that the Orchestra should part company with its Patron, with immediate effect.

"The RPO would like to express its gratitude to His Royal Highness for his support of the Orchestra over the past 15 years."

Multiple companies have cut ties with Prince Andrew, who stepped down from royal duties for the "foreseeable future "earlier this week following backlash.

a number of organisations have terminated of are reviewing their relationship with his Pitch@Palace tech entrepreneurs initiative, which the duke will continue working on without the support of Buckingham Palace.

Prince Andrew stepped down as Chancellor of Huddersfield University on Thursday after "discussions" around his role.

Barclays said it was concerned about the situation and was keeping its involvement with Pitch@Palace under review, while BT warned it would only continue to back the digital skills award programme, iDEA, if Andrew was dropped as patron.

Asian-focused bank Standard Chartered joined KPMG in deciding not to renew its sponsorship of Pitch@Palace.

A Buckingham Palace spokeswoman said on Thursday: "He will continue to work on Pitch but will look at how to do that outside and entirely separate from the palace."

It is thought the duke will not have any involvement with the dozens of charities, organisations and military units he is associated with.