Emily Maitlis says it’s ‘hormonally complicated’ to see Gillian Anderson playing her

Emily Maitlis has opened up about it being “hormonally complicated” to see actress Gillian Anderson playing her in the new Prince Andrew Netflix drama.

Journalist Maitlis made an astonishing piece of television history in 2019 when she interviewed Prince Andrew about his close association with the convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein for the BBC’s Newsnight programme.

The infamous broadcast included questions about allegations Prince Andrew had faced, which he has always denied. Alleged victim Virginia Giuffre claimed Prince Andrew was sweating a lot while he danced with her in a nightclub – something that the royal denied with the astonishing claim that he couldn’t sweat.

Prince Andrew claimed: “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 ... it was almost impossible for me to sweat.”

The interview that shocked the nation is now being turned into a Netflix film, titled Scoop, starring Gillian Anderson, Billie Piper, Keeley Hawes and Rufus Sewell.

Maitlis is being played by Anderson and the journalist had some thoughts on the casting.

Speaking to GQ Magazine last year, Maitlis joked: “I have teenage sons, so that was hormonally complicated.”

She continued: “But I’ve stayed right away from the project, actually. I haven’t seen the script. She could be playing me as a dipsomaniac, for all I know.”

Netflix shared some first-look images of the production on X/Twitter, with many people applauding the casting, as well as hair, makeup and wardrobe.

One person wrote: “Tell you what, the makeup & prosthetics department have f**kin COOKED because I genuinely thought that was actually Emily Maitlis and Andrew even more so.”

“Oh, HELLLLL YEAH, get the popcorn out. What a cast,” another said.

Another added: "This image of Gillian Anderson as Emily Maitlis during the Prince Andrew Newsnight interview is the campest thing I’ve ever seen."

At the time of writing no release date has been set for Scoop.

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