Ghislaine Maxwell Once Set up Ex-Prince Andrew and 'RHONY' Star Carole Radziwill on an "Unmemorable" Date
The reality star revealed that she once had dinner with the former Duke of York after her husband died.
Numerous stars have been mentioned in the Epstein files, but on the latest episode of the Real Housewives of New York, Carole Radziwill discussed her association with Ghislaine Maxwell—and how she ended up on a date with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.
Radziwill told RHONY cast members that she was “friendly” with Maxwell, who once dated late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and served as his business associate for years. Although she wasn’t ever introduced to Epstein himself, Radziwill did end up meeting his friend Andrew.
According to the reality star, a “mutual friend” told Maxwell in December 1999 that Carole’s husband had just passed away and she was alone in London. “And so I get a call, and she said, ‘This is Ghislaine Maxwell. I’m so sorry to hear about your husband. Let me have my friends take you out to dinner,’” Radziwill said.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor is pictured on Christmas Day 1999.
The reality star told Maxwell she was “good” and declined the invitation, but the Epstein associate, who is currently serving time in prison for child sex trafficking, was “kind of insistent.”
“I gave in,” Radziwill shared, adding that “a half an hour later, maybe even less, I get a call on my little Nokia phone from the Duke of York. Prince Andrew.” She didn’t reveal any specifics of their date, although she told fellow Housewife Daisy Toye that they never “made out.”
“We went to dinner, and that was it,” she said. “It was kind of unmemorable.”
Carole Radziwill had dinner with Andrew in December 1999.
As for Maxwell, Radziwill shared that she "kind of drifted apart" from Epstein's friend, adding that it was her "famous last name" that drew Maxwell to her. Radziwill's husband was not only the son of Prince Stanisław Albrecht Radziwiłł of Poland, but was descendant from Jackie Kennedy's sister, Caroline Bouvier.
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"She was, like, a social climber, so if you had money, access to money, power, or, say, a very famous last name, she made it her business to know you," the reality star said of Maxwell.
Kristin Contino is Marie Claire's Senior Royal and Celebrity editor. She's been covering royalty since 2018—including major moments such as the Platinum Jubilee, Queen Elizabeth II’s death and King Charles III's coronation—and places a particular focus on the British Royal Family's style and what it means.
Prior to working at Marie Claire, she wrote about celebrity and royal fashion at Page Six Style and covered royalty from around the world as chief reporter at Royal Central. Kristin has provided expert commentary for outlets including the BBC, Sky News, US Weekly, the Today Show and many others.
Kristin is also the published author of two novels, “The Legacy of Us” and “A House Full of Windsor.” She's passionate about travel, history, horses, and learning everything she can about her favorite city in the world, London.