Elizabeth Banks Shocks Graham Norton Viewers With Prince Andrew Joke

BBC

Elizabeth Banks shocked viewers of The Graham Norton Show with an unexpected joke about Prince Andrew over the weekend.

Banks was sitting on the sofa alongside Kylie Minogue, Ricky Gervais and Lewis Hamilton, completely oblivious to the fact their host was about to embarrass her with a throwback picture from her teenage years, in which she sported hoop earrings and a big haircut.

Commenting on her hair, Ricky joked: ‘Sorry, that’s a tree behind you?’ But Graham was focusing on something else entirely, a mysterious hand resting on Banks’ shoulder.

You can watch what happened in its entirety below:

The presenter initially agreed with Ricky, adding ‘that’s Marge Simpson hair’, leading Elizabeth to defend her look by stating: ‘But look how proud I am. I made that necklace myself, I was not really allowed to wear hoop earrings until I was older, those were probably some of my first hoop earrings.’

By this point though, Graham’s attention had already been drawn to something else and he said: ‘I’ve only just noticed this hand, is it someone saying, “you’ll regret this photograph”?’

To which Elizabeth immediately shot back:

That’s Prince Andrew’s hand.

BBC

The actor’s quick-witted humour prompted gasps of disbelief from fellow guest Kylie, while Ricky burst into laughter before stating: ‘Oh God, oh Jesus.’

Graham himself seemed keen to move the conversation on, insisting: ‘it’s Photoshop, it’s just Photoshop,’ before stating: ‘Moving on…’.

Viewers at home seemed shocked by the joke, although most found it hilarious with one person describing the Charlie’s Angels director as ‘sharp, funny, and risky’.

Another Twitter user suggested that even Ricky Gervais, a man known for his controversial sense of humour, wouldn’t have gone there.

Prince Andrew has made headlines in recent days after a disastrous TV interview about his friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

In the interview, the Duke of York addressed allegations about him having sex with a teenage girl, saying he ‘doesn’t recollect’ the photograph of him with his hand around then-17-year-old Virginia Giuffre ever being taken.

Ms Giuffre alleges Prince Andrew had sex with her when she was just 17 after being trafficked from the US by Epstein, claims the prince said he has a ‘problem’ with because they included that the prince had been ‘profusely sweating’.

He told Emily Maitlis:

I didn’t sweat at the time because I had suffered what I would describe as an overdose of adrenaline in the Falklands War when I was shot at and I simply… it was almost impossible for me to sweat.

BBC

Despite his denial, the way the Duke of York answered the interviewer’s questions sparked serious backlash, and he’s since been forced to step down from royal duties.

If you have been affected by any of the issues in this article and wish to speak to someone in confidence contact the Rape Crisis England and Wales helpline on 0808 802 9999 (12-2:30 and 7-9:30). Alternatively you can contact Victim Support on 08 08 16 89 111.

Male Survivors Partnership is available to support adult male survivors of sexual abuse and rape. You can contact the organisation on its website or on its helpline – 0808 800 5005.

Lucy Connolly

A Broadcast Journalism Masters graduate who went on to achieve an NCTJ level 3 Diploma in Journalism, Lucy has done stints at ITV, BBC Inside Out and Key 103. While working as a journalist for UNILAD, Lucy has reported on breaking news stories while also writing features about mental health, cervical screening awareness, and Little Mix (who she is unapologetically obsessed with).