Fox News Flash top entertainment for January 18
Fox News Flash top entertainment and celebrity headlines are here. Check out what clicked this week in entertainment.
Prince Andrew’s ex-girlfriend Lady Victoria Hervey alleged that Ghislaine Maxwell used her as "bait" to entertain Jeffrey Epstein’s friends.
The daughter of the 6th Marquess of Bristol spoke out on ITV’s documentary "Ghislaine, Prince Andrew and the Paedophile," which is airing in the U.K. on Tuesday. Ahead of the premiere, ITV released a clip to MailOnline in which the 44-year-old described Maxwell and Epstein as "Batman and Robin" and "a double act."
"Jeffrey was really the frontman and Ghislaine was the accomplice," said Hervey. "It was kind of like a Batman and Robin, and they were a double act. I don’t think Jeffrey could have done any of it without Ghislaine.
"I think he just kind of sat back and sort of waited for her to sort of go fishing and go find however many girls were needed, you know, to entertain his friends," she claimed. "I think I was pretty much used as bait. You know, looking back at it, I was really young and naïve, and she’s entertaining these big businessmen. So I didn’t realize it of course at the time. But looking back…"
PRINCE ANDREW TO 'DISAPPEAR' FROM ROYAL FAMILY EVENTS AFTER BEING STRIPPED OF TITLES: SOURCES
Lady Victoria Hervey (left) and Ghislaine Maxwell at a launch party circa 2004 in Hollywood, California. (Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
Maxwell, a British socialite, was convicted in December of luring teenage girls to be sexually abused by the American millionaire. The victims were described as being as young as 14. The defense insisted that the 60-year-old was a victim of a vindictive prosecution devised to deliver justice to women deprived of their main villain when Epstein, 66, killed himself while awaiting trial in 2019.
According to the women who came forward, Maxwell used charm and gifts to gain their trust, taking an interest in their adolescent challenges and giving them assurances that Epstein could use his wealth and connections to fulfill their dreams. They said the script would darken when Maxwell coaxed them into giving massages to Epstein that turned sexual, encounters she played off as normal. Maxwell vehemently denied the charges through her lawyers.
Hervey, who also appeared on the U.K. talk show "Lorraine," said she believed Maxwell was "a victim that became an accomplice." Hervey also insisted she had no idea what Maxwell and Epstein were really up to until the news came to light.
"She is a scapegoat right now, so unfortunately for her, she is being taken down for what he has done as well," Hervey explained. "Some might argue is not quite as fair as it could be. I mean, to be honest, I think Ghislaine was a victim and is a victim. She was a victim that then became the accomplice as her role changed in that relationship when they were no longer together. She kind of switched sides. I do see her as a victim as well."
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTER
Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell attend the 2005 Wall Street Concert Series at Cipriani Wall Street on March 15, 2005, in New York City. (Joe Schildhorn/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images)
Lorraine then asked the socialite, "Why do you think, if you were just an ordinary girl with no connections, do you think she specifically wanted you in that place?"
"At the time I was the It girl of London, on the social scene, everyone knew me, I was at every dinner event," Hervey explained. "It was a plus having me on her list of whom to invite. It probably kept it more interesting for all the men she was entertaining. Obviously, you want to have attractive girls who are the hot girls in London at the time... It wouldn't have worked with him on his own. It was a lot easier for her to approach other women being a female."
"Girls would feel less intimated and less scared, rather than a man," Hervey noted. "It would have been a lot less obvious in that respect."
Hervey insisted she didn't know anything was amiss during those parties with Epstein and Maxwell.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Gemma Kidd, Tania Bryer and Lady Victoria Hervey with Prince Andrew. (Dave Benett/Getty Images)
"I was so naive," Hervey admitted. "People in my situation that were really young, of course, we were going to get taken advantage of. We were just a pretty face to entertain people. I was one of the lucky ones and I'm aware of that... Besides the situation of having a feeling, there were video cameras in the apartment, it was social gatherings and dinner parties."
"It all seemed very fun at the time," she continued. "This is in the early 2000s when no one had any idea of what people found out later on but in the early 2000s, people wanted Ghislaine and Jeffrey at all their events. They were invited everywhere."
Hervey noted she was "a bit disappointed" by Maxwell's trial.
"She hasn't really named any new names yet," Hervey pointed out. "I'm hoping... that she will start giving out names. I don't think we're quite there yet."
ROYALS WHO HAVE BEEN STRIPPED OF THEIR TITLES: PRINCE ANDREW AND BEYOND
Lady Victoria Hervey dated Prince Andrew in the '90s. ( Daniele Venturelli/WireImage)
Hervey was asked if Maxwell ever spoke to her about her friendship with Andrew, 61.
"No. I mean, she was really quite private about a lot, but obviously, they were good friends," she replied. "You can just tell by the body language when you see people when they're good friends."
Hervey and the prince dated in the late '90s following his divorce from Sarah Ferguson in 1996. She has kept tight-lipped about their relationship.
Earlier this month, Andrew's military affiliations and royal patronages were being returned to Queen Elizabeth II at her behest in the wake of his ongoing legal battle with Epstein accuser Virginia Roberts Giuffre. Buckingham Palace confirmed in a statement sent to Fox News Digital that the reigning monarch, 95, agreed to accept the returned accolades.
QUEEN ELIZABETH II TOLD PRINCE ANDREW HE WAS STRIPPED OF HIS HRH TITLE: REPORT
Photo from 2001 that was included in court files shows Prince Andrew with his arm around the waist of 17-year-old Virginia Giuffre who says Jeffrey Epstein paid her to have sex with the prince. Andrew has denied the charges. In the background is Epstein's girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell. (U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals)
Before the announcement, a judge refused to dismiss a lawsuit against the British prince by the American woman who said he sexually abused her when she was 17. The queen's second son previously quit public duties in November 2019, but he was still listed on the royal family’s website as a patron or member of around 100 charities and organizations.
Giuffre sued Andrew in August, alleging she was coerced into sexual encounters with him in 2001 by Epstein and Maxwell. Giuffre said she was sexually abused by Andrew at Maxwell’s London home, at Epstein’s New York mansion and his estate in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Andrew has denied the allegations.
Giuffre asserted that she met Andrew while she traveled frequently with Epstein between 2000 and 2002 when her lawyers maintain she was "on call for Epstein for sexual purposes" and was "lent out to other powerful men," including Andrew. Her lawsuit said she still suffers significant emotional and psychological distress and harm.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Trending
