Elizabeth Banks stuns Graham Norton show guests with cheeky Prince Andrew joke

Publish Date: Tuesday, 26 November 2019, 4:21PM

Elizabeth Banks left her fellow guests on The Graham Norton Show stunned when she shared an off-the-cuff jibe at embattled royal Prince Andrew.

The Charlie’s Angels writer-director was appearing on the famous red couch alongside Ricky Gervais, Kylie Minogue and Lewis Hamilton.

However, when the popular talk show host attempted to embarrass Banks with a throwback photo from her teenage years, in which she sports hoop earrings and a big haircut, Banks had the last laugh.

Pointing at the mysterious hand resting on Banks' shoulder in the picture, Norton said: "I’ve only just noticed this hand, is it someone saying, 'You’ll regret this photograph.'"

Not missing a beat, Banks retorted: "That's Prince Andrew's hand!"

Fellow guest Minogue was clearly caught off guard with her eyes nearly popping out of her head as she registered what Banks had said.

While Gervais burst into hysterical laughter, before commenting: "Oh God, oh Jesus."

It wasn't long before Norton added: "Photoshopped, it's photoshopped" — a reference to the implication made by some of the prince's friends that a photo of him with his arm around his accuser's waist could have been faked.

It's been claimed the prince, who is eighth in line to the throne, had sex with billionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein's "sex slave" Virginia Roberts (now Virginia Giuffre) in 2001, when Roberts was just 17 years old.

The prince recently gave an interview to BBC Newsnight about his links to Epstein, who was found dead in his prison cell earlier this year while being held on sex trafficking charges.

During the BBC interview, the prince insisted he did not remember ever meeting Roberts, despite the existence of the photograph.

He added that public displays of affection were not something he would do but refused to reveal whether he thought the image was doctored.

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