The major differences between A Very Royal Scandal and Netflix's Scoop

Most TV interviews are quickly forgotten about. A select few remain in the public conscious and an even smaller group are later dramatized -  but none have ever been so memorable that they required two separate shows.

That was until today when a second retelling of Prince Andrew's car crash interview with Emily Maitlis on Newsnight back in November 2019 was released for public viewing.

A Very Royal Scandal, a three-part series released on Amazon Prime, tells the story of Maitlis’s version of events in the build up to the interview which eventually led to the Duke stepping down from public life.

Its release comes five-and-a-half months after another drama about the Royal sit-down chat landed on Netflix.

Scoop, the film adaptation of Newsnight producer Sam McAlister's memoir, showcased the show's booker fighting her colleagues to bag the interview that rocked the world.

Both shows contain many of the same key details. The interview highlights are all in there - including Andrew discussing his friendship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, denying having ever met 17-year-old Virginia Guiffre, and his bizarre excuses to do with sweating, the Falklands War and Pizza Express.

But outside of the presentation of the actual interview, the programmes have very distinct takes on this now famous tale. MailOnline takes a look at the crucial differences: 

The portrayals of the key characters 

Most viewers will have tuned into both of these dramas to see who portrayed the two key characters - Maitlis and Andrew - in this infamous story the best. 

Scoop starred Gillian Anderson as Maitlis, Billie Piper as McAlister and Rufus Sewell as Prince Andrew. 

While in A Very Royal Scandal, Ruth Wilson plays Maitlis, Clare Calbraith is McAlister and Michael Sheen is Andrew. 

While both excelled in her mannerisms, Wilson mastered Maitlis’s voice in a way that Anderson struggled to. 

However, the heavy prosthetics on Sewell made him a more convincing Andrew than Sheen’s version. 

Emily Maitlis  

The iconic broadcaster serves as executive producer on A Very Royal Scandal and her story acts as a focal point of the series.

We are given a more in-depth view into her home life and persona away from the camera, being portrayed as almost constantly flustered and rushed off her feet.

She is seen dropping her heels on the way into Buckingham Palace, as she arrives late for the interview, and sitting on the loo when she gets inside, drying her sweaty armpits with toilet roll.

In Scoop, she is cast in more a supporting role and is always impeccably dressed and seemingly unflappable in every scene.

Sam McAlister 

While A Very Royal Scandal is focused on Maitlis' version of events, Scoop's focus is that of McAlister.

Of course, this is to be expected as the film is based on her memoirs. But not only are we given more background about this producer's life and character, we are also told that she was the driving force in securing the interview.

There are scenes which show her carrying out late-night researches into Andrew and Epstein's relationship and making contact with the photographer who took the famous photo of the two of them walking through a park in New York in 2010.

But in A Very Royal Scandal, McAlister appears only in very small snippets, such as bringing up Andrew to her Newsnight colleagues in the first instance. But this is only when she mentions his team has been in touch with her about his entrepreneur initiative Pitch at the Palace.

Instead, the credit for making the Epstein and Andrew link goes to Maitlis and Stewart MacLean, the deputy editor of Newsnight played by Éanna Hardwicke, who is shown being Maitlis’s right-hand man in setting up the meeting.

Andrew's pre-interview and question to Maitlis 

Both dramatisations showcase the pivotal scene in which Maitlis, McAlister and MacLean meet the Duke, his secretary Amanda Thirsk and his daughter Beatrice to try and persuade him to do the interview.

But the portrayals of this meeting at the Palace are different in almost every way.

In Scoop, the scene takes place around a large dining room/boardroom table and sees both sides speaking with a cautious, professional and honest tone towards each other.

It also shows McAlister acting as the key person in convincing Andrew to take the interview by bluntly telling him it is way for him to change his image as 'Randy Andy' and tell his side of the story.

In A Very Royal Scandal, the scene takes place in what appears to be a much smaller office with Maitlis, McAlister and MacLean squeezed in on a sofa across from Andrew.

Maitlis' demeanor is much more playful as she looks to charm the Prince into doing the interview and is the main speaker for the group.

McAlister's only involvement is to mention that the interview would be a good opportunity to mention his Pitch at the Palace initiative.

The most striking line from the Very Royal Scandal's portrayal of this meeting is when Andrew asks Maitlis, MacLean and McAlister if any of them have been abused, in an attempt to see if their judgment of the case would be coloured by any personal experience.

There is no mention of this question in Scoop, but Andrew is suggested to have eerily said: 'I don't know why everyone is so obsessed with my friendship with Jefery Epstein. I knew Jimmy Saville so much better.'

Dramatic licence 

When looking into Andrew's life, both shows use a bit of dramatic licence to fill in the gaps.  

In Scoop, a naked Andrew is seen watching the Newsnight interview in the bath and stepping out to reveal his bare bottom. 

But outside of this there is very little insight into the Duke's psyche, which can not be said for A Very Royal Scandal. 

Across the three episodes, Andrew is show playing charades with family and enjoying a hunting weekend with friends on the evening that Newsnight airs. 

There are numerous imagined conversations between his daughters, as well as a moment where Fergie (Claire Rushbrook) asking him if he’s guilty while he angrily hits golf balls into the dark night sky.