The seasonal punchline follows a turbulent and highly public year for the royal formerly known as Prince Andrew.
Loss of titles after years of controversy
Earlier this year, Buckingham Palace confirmed that King Charles had formally removed his younger brother’s remaining royal titles, leaving him officially known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.
The decision came after years of controversy linked to Andrew’s association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, along with allegations made by Virginia Giuffre, which Andrew has consistently denied. Although an out-of-court settlement was reached in 2022, he was forced to step back from royal duties and relinquish multiple honours, with his Duke of York title also being removed last year.
Public turns royal downfall into satire
Against that backdrop, the British public has now transformed the situation into festive satire.
A joke referencing Andrew’s loss of titles has been crowned the funniest modern Christmas cracker joke of the year, beating competition from quips about Oasis, Sabrina Carpenter and Nigel Farage.
The winning joke reads: “Why is Prince Andrew not writing any Christmas books? He hasn’t got any titles.”