Is Prince Andrew Obsessed With Teddy Bears In Real Life? Rumors Explored Amid Netflix's Scoop Release
Prince Andrew's alleged obsession with teddy bears, as depicted in Netflix's Scoop, mirrors real-life accounts from former royal staffers. Read for a detailed account on the subject.
Trigger Warning: This article includes references to sexual abuse
Is Prince Andrew obsessed with Teddy Bears in real life? This is a question that has kept the viewers of Netflix’s Scoop intrigued lately.
For those not in the loop, Scoop is a dramatized account of how the women of Newsnight secured Prince Andrew’s infamous 2019 interview about his alleged friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
In one of the scenes of Scoop, per StyleCaster, Prince Andrew berates a maid for rearranging his teddy bear collection on his bed. The scene left many wondering if the Prince is actually obsessed with his stuffed toys in real life. Well, it seems like the dramatized presentation in the latest Netflix offering is not far from the truth at all.
Here's why we suppose so!
Prince Andrew’s obsession with teddy bears explored amid Netflix’s Scoop release
There have been not one or two, but several accounts where staffers who previously worked for Prince Andrew have disclosed his obsession with teddy bears.
Charlotte Briggs, who used to work for the royal, per StyleCaster, told The Sun in 2022 about her daily duties in arranging the stuffed toys for the Prince. “As soon as I got the job, I was told about the teddies and it was drilled into me how he wanted them,” she said, before adding, “I even had a day’s training. Everything had to be just right. It was so peculiar.” Briggs also reportedly claimed the bears had been collected from all over the world and many of them were dressed like sailors.
The former royal worker continued, “It was so odd. After all, he was a grown man who had served in his Falklands. But he absolutely loved the teddies and was very clear about how he wanted them arranged.”
In another similar account, Paul Page, who worked with Royalty and Specialist Protection Command between 1998-2004, told Indian actor Ranveer Singh on the ITV documentary Ghislaine, Prince Andrew and the Pedophile: “It had about 50 or 6 stuffed toys positioned on the bed and basically there was a card the inspector showed us in a drawer and it was a picture of these bears all in situ. The reason for the laminated picture was if those bears weren't put back in the right order by the maids, he would shout and scream.”
Similarly, Elizabeth Day recounted her time interviewing Prince Andrew in an essay with Daily Mail, writing, “I was told to wait in a corridor where my only other companion was an oversized teddy bear squashed into a seat. When I was ushered in to meet Prince Andrew, I asked him about it. He sniggered and told me it had been a wedding gift from his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson.”
Day continued in her essay, “Apparently he had found the bear waiting for him when he got into the horse-drawn carriage that was to take them from Westminster Abbey to their reception. I remember that he found this extremely funny, even several years after the event.”
What happened with Prince Andrew? Why is the Duke of York a subject of intrigue?
Prince Andrew was allegedly acquainted with Jeffrey Epstein, the sex offender who was found dead in his cell at the Metropolitan Correction Center, NY before he was set to face court on sex trafficking charges.
During the 2019 BBC Newsnight interview (which is chronicled in Scoop), Prince Andrew, per StyleCaster, said he “regretted” his connection to Epstein but had no memory of ever meeting Giuffre, one of Epstein's victims.
“I have no recollection of ever meeting this lady, none whatsoever,” the Prince reportedly said.
Shortly after the interview aired, Prince Andrew stepped back from royal life, asking his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II for permission to withdraw from royal duties.
In 2022, Andrew was stripped of his military titles after a sexual abuse civil lawsuit against him, which he settled.
Common Disclaimer: If you need support or know someone who is struggling with violence or assault or abuse, please reach out to your nearest mental health specialist, NGO or speak to someone about it. There are several helplines available for the same.