Prince William and Prince Andrew’s Viral Awkward Moment Has Resurfaced Amid the Disgraced Royal's Recent Drama

In the wake of Prince Andrew's decision to voluntarily relinquish his royal titles amid backlash over new revelations about his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, an awkward moment the disgraced royal recent shared with his nephew, Prince William, is going viral—for a second time.

The moment in question occurred last month, when William and Andrew were both among the mourners attending the Duchess of Kent's funeral. Cameras caught the pair standing side-by-side on the steps of Westminster Cathedral, where the service was held and Andrew appeared to make a disastrously-awkward attempt at small talk with his nephew.

As we reported when the awkward encounter first went viral in September, the clip, which was dubbed "a case study in please stfu-ism" in a post on X, shows Andrew sidling up to William at the royal funeral service and attempting to strike up a conversation, with "attempting" being the operative word.

Will's reaction deserved every bit of viral attention it received, and could be used to teach a PhD-level class on telling someone that talking to them is the very last thing you want to be doing without actually saying a word.

In a post written by another user who shared a longer version of the clip on X during its first moment of viral fame, wrote, "Watch how the disgusting man Andrew out of nowhere got closer to #PrinceWilliam, looked at the cameras then tried to talk to him while William’s body language said everything, he ignored him and started talking to Sir Tim Laurence +see William was normal with other family members."

At the time, royal experts and insiders alike weighed about the situation, making it clear that William's look of disdain wasn't an accident, but a perfect reflection of his feelings about his scandal-laden uncle.

The Daily Beast, reported that the Prince of Wales was William “boiling with anger” over being put in the situation at all, citing a source close to the future King who said he was "furious" over the forced proximity to his uncle, who the source said William had taken pains to avoid at public events for years prior to the awkward moment at the Duchess of Kent's funeral, where he felt "ambushed" by his uncle.

Although commentary about William's feelings about his uncle understandably picked up after their moment at the Duchess of Kent's funeral went viral, it had long been understood that the heir felt Andrew had become a liability to the monarchy.

"I think William is harder about this and perhaps more willing to take a tough stand against his uncle," former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond told The Mirror of the situation, adding that William seems "determined to protect the monarchy and show that they do all understand the strength of public animosity towards Andrew."

When Andrew's latest wave of scandal and backlash hit after The Sun published an email he allegedly sent to Epstein in February 2011 that seemed to prove the disgraced royal lied in his bombshell 2019 BBC interview about Epstein, it's no surprise that William was "in lockstep" with King Charles on the decision for Prince Andrew to stop using his royal titles, as a palace source told People.

While reports suggest that the King may prefer not to take further action against his infamous younger brother, Will is said to want Andrew distanced even further from the royal family and reportedly hopes his uncle will "disappear" following the loss of his titles as the Prince and Princess of Wales "can't abide" Andrew and are troubled by the proximity of his home at Royal Lodge, which is just four miles from their family's new "forever home" in Windsor.