The television interview with Prince Andrew proved a bombshell for the BBC at the time. Now its been turned into a new film streaming on Netflix, reports NICK OVERALL. 

“I EXPECTED a train wreck. That was a plane crashing into an oil tanker, causing a tsunami, triggering a nuclear explosion level bad.”

That’s how Royal Central, a news website that covers all things to do with monarchy, described the BBC’s explosive 2019 interview with Prince Andrew.

In it, journalist Emily Maitlis grilled the third child of Queen Elizabeth about his association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, and the allegations that he himself had abused one of the victims.

Prince Andrew denied any wrongdoing, but the interview still spelled disaster for the Duke of York.

In the aftermath, many charities associated with the prince were quick to distance themselves from him.

The flames from this wreck of an interview spread so quickly they threatened to leave the entire Royal Family burned, leading Prince Andrew to step away from his public duties.

It was an absolute bombshell for the BBC at the time and now its been turned into a new film streaming on Netflix.

It’s called Scoop and it stars X-Files star Gillian Anderson as Maitlis and Rufus Sewell as Prince Andrew.

It’s perhaps no surprise that this film also comes from one of the directors of The Crown, Netflix’s smash-hit series that tracked the reign of Elizabeth II and which also starred Anderson as Margaret Thatcher.

The inspiration comes from a book by Sam McAlister, the BBC producer who helped secure the infamous interview. While the outcome of this behind the scenes filmic account is known, it doesn’t negate the fact that Scoop still makes for a compelling watch, especially during its final, climactic act.

Of course, a film like this is sure to stir up some big differences of opinion. McAlister herself has admitted that while many parts of Scoop are accurate, some moments required creative liberties to keep the story moving.

For the disgraced Prince himself, it certainly will not help his already destroyed reputation.

Sewell, who plays Prince Andrew, said he used David Brent, the incompetent and cringe-inducing boss from the UK version of The Office, as a reference point for the character.

If that doesn’t say it all, I don’t know what does.

Interestingly, another television series about the interview with Prince Andrew is also in the works over at Amazon Prime Video called A Very Royal Scandal.

The Crown may have ended only last year but it seems the appetite for royal drama certainly hasn’t. The monarchy’s PR team must be in overdrive right now.

IN a different slice of streaming news this week, one of Netflix’s biggest shows is coming to our own backyard.

From April 16 to 23, Bowral will be transformed into something straight out of the regency-period drama Bridgerton.

“Working with local businesses in Bowral to create a fan experience like no other, Netflix will marry one of Australia’s most beautiful small towns with the romance and beauty of the Ton,” says the Southern Highlands Tourism website.

People in Bowral will also be given exclusive early access to the first episode of the new season that will be screened in the local cinema.

For those who aren’t on board with Bridgerton, consider it this generation’s version of a Jane Austin novel.

It follows eight close-knit siblings of the prestigious Bridgerton family and their witty ways of navigating the 19th century marriage market.

The show is a major hit for Netflix. When season two came out in 2022, subscribers worldwide watched 193 million hours of Bridgerton in its first two days of streaming, making it the most successful opening weekend for an English language TV series in Netflix’s history.

With that kind of popularity its a huge boost for Bowral, a town with an old-world charm that’s seemingly caught Netflix’s eye indeed, the company no doubt seeing it as a chance to generate hype amongst Bridgerton’s massive Aussie audience.