The Queen summoned Prince Andrew to Buckingham Palace to effectively sack him from royal duties after intense lobbying from his older brother Prince Charles, it is claimed.

According to a Daily Mirror report, new details have emerged about what went on behind the scenes before Andrew was forced to step down following his ‘car crash’ interview about his paedophile pal Jeffrey Epstein and claims he had sex with a 17-year-old trafficking victim.

With the Royal Family plunged into an unprecedented crisis that was worsening by the day, the Queen and Charles discussed what to do before the monarch summoned the Duke of York – said to be her favourite son – to Buckingham Palace where he issued a grovelling apology.

Andrew held crisis talks with his mum – reported to be “disappointed” and “unhappy” – and his brother before the Queen told her second-born child to step down.

She then informed the wider Royal Family before the palace issued a bombshell statement on behalf of the scandal-hit prince, it was reported.