Lady Victoria Hervey: Prince Andrew's Loyal Defender Amidst Epstein Fallout

Prince Andrew's former girlfriend, Lady Victoria Hervey, has emerged as his staunchest public advocate amidst ongoing scrutiny over his longstanding association with the late convicted sex offender, Jeffrey Epstein.

In October 2025, Andrew publicly declared his voluntary renunciation of all his royal titles due to persistent questioning regarding his ties to Epstein. The prince has consistently maintained his ignorance of Epstein's global sex trafficking operation prior to the disgraced financier and convicted sex offender's federal arrest in the U.S. in 2019. (Epstein died by suicide at age 66 while in federal custody in August 2019.)

Hervey, a long-time friend and past romantic partner of the prince, has consistently defended him throughout the controversy, even revealing her own connection to Epstein.

On several occasions, Hervey drew criticism for questioning the credibility of the late Epstein victim, Virginia Giuffre, who sued Andrew for sexual assault in 2021. Andrew denied ever having met Giuffre in a 2019 interview with BBC Newsnight, and has repeatedly refuted Giuffre's allegations. The two parties settled the lawsuit privately for an undisclosed sum before Giuffre died by suicide in April 2025.

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Continue reading for more details on Hervey’s relationship with Andrew and her vocal support for the embattled royal.

Who Is Lady Victoria Hervey?

The socialite and former British media "It Girl" was born into an aristocratic family, as the daughter of Victor Hervey, the 6th Marquess of Bristol, a businessman and member of the House of Lords. Her late brother, John, was the 7th Marquess of Bristol, while her half-brother, Frederick, became the 8th Marquess after John's death in 1999.

"I used to think my title would be a disadvantage in life, but I now realize it will be a great help," Victoria predicted to Hello! Magazine in 1996.

She modeled for Christian Dior and participated in a celebrity edition of Love Island in the U.K. in 2006. Victoria and her friend Jayne Blight owned Akademi, a boutique in Knightsbridge, London, which was patronized by Victoria Beckham and other notable figures in the British fashion industry before its closure in 2001 due to financial difficulties.

Additionally, Victoria's romantic life was frequently covered by the British press in the 2000s, as she reportedly dated F1 driver David Coulthard and former Boyzone member Shane Lynch.

When Did Lady Victoria Hervey Date Prince Andrew?

In 2019, Victoria informed Good Morning Britain that she had a brief romantic involvement with Andrew following his 1996 divorce from his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson.

"It wasn't really [dating], we had a couple of dinners together," she told Good Morning Britain's hosts. "And that was around the same time [as I met Epstein], I think it was around 1999, 2000."

What Is Lady Victoria Hervey’s Connection to Jeffrey Epstein?

Similar to Andrew, Victoria asserted that she was introduced to Epstein through his then-girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell. She recalled attending a dinner in London with Epstein and Maxwell, where Andrew, Bill Clinton, and Donald Trump were all allegedly present.

Victoria remembered feeling "very uneasy" during a stay at one of Epstein's New York City apartments, though she denied any direct awareness of his criminal activities.

"I felt I was being watched, there were cameras, there were hidden cameras and I left I think after about 10 days or so," she told Good Morning Britain in 2019.

She continued, "I had no idea [what was going on], I really had no idea and the more I was reading about it, the more I was like, 'Wow, I was actually in one of these apartments.' I saw things but I didn't see the truth, like I had no idea what was really going on."

Despite condemning Epstein's crimes, she told Good Morning Britain host Piers Morgan in November 2019 that she disagreed with the application of the term "sex trafficking" in reference to the convicted sex offender.

"I think, to be honest, 'sex trafficking,' that's a very strong word and I don't think that's a correct word to use for this," she stated. "When you think of [sex trafficking it's] a 12-year-old that's been kidnapped, that's been chained in a cage. This is not the same thing."

Victoria ultimately softened her stance when Morgan and his cohost Susanna Reid highlighted that numerous underage girls had leveled trafficking accusations against Epstein. (Epstein was convicted of state prostitution charges in Florida in 2008 and was later re-arrested on federal sex trafficking charges shortly before his suicide in 2019.)

"It's extraordinary that this is the case," she remarked regarding the allegations against Epstein and Maxwell. "It's a wild story."

Her perspective on the allegations had shifted by 2022 when she informed ITV News that she believed she had been "used as bait" by Epstein and Maxwell to lure other women.

"I think [Epstein] just kind of sat – sat back and sort of waited for [Maxwell] to sort of go fishing and go find however many girls were needed to entertain his friends," she explained. "I think I was pretty much used as bait, looking back at it. I was like, really, young and naive and [Epstein and Maxwell are] entertaining these big businessmen."

Nevertheless, Victoria implied that Maxwell was being made "a scapegoat" for Epstein's offenses in light of the financier's death in 2019. (Maxwell is currently serving a 20-year federal prison sentence after being convicted of child sex trafficking and other offenses in 2021.)

"I mean, she unfortunately is a scapegoat right now because there is no-one else to blame," Victoria stated. "So, unfortunately for her, she is being taken down for what he's done as well which, some might argue, is not quite as fair as it could be."

What Has Lady Victoria Hervey Said in Prince Andrew’s Defense?

Hervey has been a steadfast advocate for Andrew since the royal's connection to Epstein re-emerged in 2019. Following Andrew's poorly received 58-minute television interview with BBC Newsnight's Emily Maitlis in November 2019, Victoria surprisingly suggested that the shocking TV appearance served as proof of his innocence to her.

"I watched it and I thought, there is no way, if he is guilty, that he would go onto television and do an interview like that. There's no way," she asserted to Good Morning Britain at the time.

Andrew was sued by Epstein victim Giuffre over sexual assault claims in 2021 and settled the lawsuit for a private sum the following year. Victoria frequently spoke out in support of Andrew, who has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.

When Giuffre stated in March 2025 that she had only days to live after reportedly being hit by a school bus, Victoria characterized Giuffre's condition as "karma" and implied it might have been an attempt to gain sympathy. The socialite claimed that "reliable sources" had informed her "the FBI went to [Giuffre] recently with evidence/proof that she lied with recordings where she admits nothing ever happened with Prince Andrew."

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"If Virginia Giuffre really does have days to live then a complete confession is needed," Hervey declared on Monday. "I don't believe it though, the FBI are on her right now and arrest warrants are incoming: She's conveniently dying to evade jail."

Victoria continued via her Instagram Story: "The pain caused by her lies — destroying lives and tearing families apart, all for money — is no small thing. She has a lot to answer for. I call this divine judgment by God. People often say karma has a way of catching up, don't they? What goes around comes around, and someone who's caused that much harm might just find the truth closing in on them one day. When it does, it's rarely pretty. Whether in this life or beyond, the weight of those choices tends to find a way to settle the score."

Giuffre died by suicide at age 41 in April 2025. Victoria again generated controversy by sharing the news of Giuffre's death via Instagram, along with the caption: "When lies catch up with you there's no way out."

Her accounts were inundated with negative reactions, prompting Victoria to announce that she would "pause my posts on the topic."

"Irrespective of circumstances, suicide in anyone at anytime is tragic and in a young mother who has children even more," she added.

In October 2025, Victoria defended Andrew after multiple U.K. outlets published alleged leaked email exchanges between him, Ferguson, and Epstein from 2011.

One email allegedly sent in 2011 reportedly showed Andrew telling Epstein that they were "in this together and will have to rise above it" after they were photographed together in New York City. Andrew allegedly concluded the email with: "We'll play some more soon!"

The timing of this 2011 email was critical, as Andrew famously told Newsnight that he had ceased all communication with Epstein after visiting him in New York in December 2010.

Victoria supported Andrew despite the chronological inconsistency when she appeared on Piers Morgan Uncensored in October 2025.

"When [Andrew] said, 'I haven't seen [Epstein] again' or 'I haven't spoken to him,' an email is not speaking on the phone with someone. That can also be taken out of context," she argued.

Victoria also commented on another leaked email, where Andrew's ex-wife, Ferguson, allegedly referred to Epstein as "a supreme friend" to her family and implied she had avoided using "the P word" (pedophile) in a 2011 interview where she distanced herself from the convicted sex offender. (A spokesperson for Ferguson stated she only wrote an email to Epstein "to counter an aggressive threat Epstein had made to sue her for defamation.")

"[Ferguson] was being threatened by [Epstein]. He wanted to take her down and her family," Victoria insisted. "If someone said he was going to come after [my] kids, I would probably write a groveling email as well … If someone was threatening me, I would do exactly the same."

If you or someone you know is a human trafficking victim, contact the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888.