The producer responsible for arranging Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s catastrophic 2019 BBC Newsnight interview has revealed that Princess Beatrice played a pivotal role in making it happen.
Sam McAlister, whose story was dramatised in the Netflix film Scoop with Billie Piper portraying her, has labelled the 37-year-old princess the “rainmaker”.
The term rainmaker is typically reserved for those who clinch major business deals.
Ms McAlister stated during her first public comments since King Charles’s brother was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office, that Beatrice arrived unexpectedly at face-to-face negotiations just three days before the interview took place at Buckingham Palace.
The producer responsible for arranging Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s catastrophic 2019 BBC Newsnight interview has revealed that Princess Beatrice played a pivotal role in making it happen.
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According to Ms McAlister, the princess was safeguarding her father’s interests throughout the discussions.
“She was super-polite, super-nice, super-friendly. But in that room with the people that were there, she was the one that had his interest purely at heart,” Ms McAlister explained.
The producer emphasised that Beatrice’s presence proved decisive in determining whether the interview would proceed at all.
According to Ms McAlister, the princess was safeguarding her father’s interests throughout the discussions.
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“And it was clear that if we did not answer her questions well, that this interview was never going to happen. That is why I believe she was profoundly important in the conversation,” she said.
Ms McAlister also pointed to personal factors behind Andrew’s decision to sit down with Emily Maitlis.
The former duke was approaching his 60th birthday and his elder daughter was engaged to property developer Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi.
Ms McAlister also pointed to personal factors behind Andrew’s decision to sit down with Emily Maitlis.
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Ms McAlister said: “The human reason was he was about to turn 60.
“His daughter was about to get married and he wanted, as a father, to walk her down the aisle and return to the life that he had had before these onerous allegations and friendships hung over him like a dark cloud.”
“So his motivation is to, I suppose, clear his name.”