Kieran Hodgson has spoken about walking a “real tightrope” with his satirical comedy Prince Andrew: The Musical.
The British actor stars as the recently evicted royal in his self-written Channel 4 biographical musical film, which takes a “light-hearted” approach to storying Prince Andrew’s “very public fall from grace”.
In a new interview with The Times, published on Tuesday 27 December, Hodgson discussed his source material, including the Prince’s latest scandal – his connection to the late Jeffrey Epstein – which led to him being stripped of his royal title.
“I thought it was more interesting to see the trajectory of decline and fall from a high starting point,” Hodgson explained. “To see the main characters’ attractive qualities in order to have their less attractive qualities thrown into relief.”
He continued: “The decisions Andrew has made are his own decisions, the mess he has got into is a very particular one. However, I think it is a bizarre and monstrous fate to be born in the royal family, to have your whole perception of the world and your place in it warped from the very start.
“It is not something that I in any way envy,” he added.
“And to emerge from it with anything like a grounding or an understanding of your context is a huge achievement. So as much as we ought to be appalled, we oughtn’t be quite so surprised that this system generated such a disaster.”
While Hodgson is aware “and quite scared of” the “very strong reactions” his take on the royals will elicit, he said: “We were limited by legal realities. And by our commission, which was to entertain.
“So I think we have made our satirical points as strongly as possible while remaining a light-hearted comedy for Christmas.”
Prince Andrew: The Musical premieres on Channel 4 on 29 December.
