Emily Maitlis Opens Up About Her Interview With Prince Andrew
In a week that has finally seen Prince Andrew somewhat out of the headlines, Emily Maitlis has brought the scandal back into the spotlight.
The presenter interviewed Prince Andrew on BBC Newsnight in a conversation that will go down as one of the most infamous car crashes ever to be televised.
The Prince appeared arrogant, dishonest, and not at all empathetic to any of the women who had come forward about the abuse they suffered from Jeffrey Epstein and his friends.
Maitlis Wrote About The Experience For 'The Guardian'
Now, Maitlis has written an article for The Guardian in which she gives us some insight into what happened behind the scenes.
She talks about the fact that she was just as surprised by the interview as the rest of us, writing, "We still cannot quite believe it happened. We have to pinch ourselves seeing global headlines, day after day: the ramifications of all the painstaking observations he made to us in that hour of surreal television."
And she's right to describe the interview as "surreal" being that most of us couldn't quite believe what we were seeing. Like an accident, it was hard to take your eyes off the screen.
She Described Her Relief That The Interview Happened At All
The presenter also described her surprise at the fact that the interview happened at all, expecting that it would be pulled at any moment. She writes about it as if it was an action packed thriller movie, keeping her on the edge of her seat.
"People have asked what I was thinking as I sat there opposite the prince, preparing for the questions to come. How do you make small talk? How do you compose the tone you need for the hour ahead? My overriding emotion was a relief," she wrote.
"I expected the interview to be pulled at every stage. It had been months in the making and got sign-off just 48 hours earlier. Even then it was pushed back by a couple of hours, then brought forward by one."
It's Not A Royal Encounter
Maitlis talks about preparing for the interview, and role-playing ahead of time, unsure of how she should have approached a conversation with a member of the royal family. Her editor, however, made sure she knew what she was going into.
Maitlis writes We had role-played the interview to prepare. We had imagined scenarios and responses, evasions and deviations. 'Do I have to say ‘Sir’ after each question?' I pondered. My editor, Esme Wren, gave me a gentle look, as if I had gone slightly mad. 'You are courteous and firm. This is a Newsnight interview, not a royal encounter.'"
The Interview Took On A Life Of Its Own
She described the time it took her to truly understand what had transpired. The interview became much more important than she ever thought it would, and she talks about it as something much bigger than herself.
She concluded, writing, "What began with a plan, a hunch and a Newsnight huddle now has a life of its own. It is no longer ours. It belongs somewhere bigger."
It appears Maitlis is correct in the fact that the interview truly did take on "a life of its own," and will forever go down in media infamy.
