Emily Maitlis: I admire Prince Andrew for doing Newsnight interview

Emily Maitlis, the Newsnight presenter, has said she "admires" the Duke of York for putting himself up for scrutiny.

The BBC journalist's interrogation of Prince Andrew over the Jeffrey Epstein sex scandal last month was widely seen as a triumph for her, and a PR disaster for him.

The Duke stepped down from official public duties for the foreseeable future following the backlash.

But Maitlis said: "I admire him for his candour and his engagement with the questions in an age of so much deviation and circumnavigation, and quite often a failure to put yourself up for scrutiny."

She said she did not expect the interview to have the repercussions it had.

Maitlis told Radio Times: "I didn't see it coming. It wasn't an attempt to bring down the Royals, just a chance to understand the story."

She added: "I didn't like people saying, 'Oh, it's a car crash interview,' because I thought, 'That's not enticing, that's not encouraging.' I don't want people thinking that's what happens at Newsnight."

Maitlis said the impression she got from Prince Andrew was "definitely that he had been happy" with the interview. She said it was not up to her to decide whether he was being truthful because "it's not my job".

"I'm not a judge, I'm not a barrister, this isn't a court of law," she added. The full interview is in Radio Times.