As the weight of his arrest dawns on him and detectives continue to rifle through his belongings, there is only one man Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor can turn to: the ever-loyal Gary Bloxsome.
The former Duke of York has once again called on the services of the criminal defence solicitor as the threat of misconduct charges loom over him.
Mr Bloxsome is understood to be central to Andrew’s hastily assembled legal team after he was hauled in for questioning by police without warning on Thursday morning.
Known as Good News Gary owing to his penchant for presenting the King’s brother with the most optimistic outlook even in the bleakest moments, he will likely to be a welcome sight for the embattled royal.
He has been in Andrew’s corner since 2020, helping him fend off sex abuse allegations from his chief accuser Virginia Giuffre and repeatedly avoid American authorities’ demands for an interview.
Mr Bloxsome became Andrew’s closest confidant – spending as much time with him on the golf course as he did studying legal documents.
The 62-year-old, a partner at Blackfords law firm for decades, appears well equipped to handle Andrew’s biggest crisis yet. His reputation is built, not on dramatic courtroom victories, but on something far less visible – preventing cases from ever reaching court listings in the first place.
Once described as a ‘bulldog in a suit’, he has been hailed as a ‘pre-eminent pre charge’ lawyer and ‘the person to get if you want to avoid being charged in the first place,’ according to Legal 500.
Pictured: Gary Bloxsome. Known as Good News Gary owing to his penchant for presenting the King’s brother with the most optimistic outlook even in the bleakest moments, he will likely to be a welcome sight for the embattled royal
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor in March 2024. Mr Bloxsome became Andrew’s closest confidant – spending as much time with him on the golf course as he did studying legal documents
The influential legal directory added: ‘If there is a chance of getting a case dropped, he will find it.’ Another entry, according to his career profile, said he was a ‘very tough criminal litigator, excellent in the police station and in persuading the police not to proceed’.
His legal biography boasts of successfully defending ‘ultra-high-net worth individuals in international jurisdictions’. His team is believed to consist of Blackfords partner Jennifer Richardson who specialises in serious ‘business crime’ and defending individuals accused of multi-million-pound frauds.
She also represented several individuals probed over alleged failures that contributed to the 2017 Grenfell Tower blaze that killed 72 people.
Also thought to be advising is Clare Montgomery KC, from London’s Matrix Chambers which was founded by Cherie Blair KC, wife of former Prime Minister Sir Tony Blair. She previously fought to prevent the extradition of Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet following accusations of human rights abuses and represented Shrien Dewani, who was acquitted of murdering his wife on their 2010 South Africa honeymoon.
It is not yet known whether Mr Bloxsome attended the remote Norfolk police station where Andrew was questioned for 11 hours on his 66th birthday after being arrested at Wood Farm.
Having earned his position as Andrew’s ‘inner circle of one’, Mr Bloxsome was believed to have still been visiting him at Royal Lodge before he was banished to the Sandringham Estate.
In 2022, Andrew insisted Mr Bloxsome accompany him to Windsor Castle after being summoned by the Queen amid a backlash over his links to Jeffrey Epstein. It is understood that the solicitor was ultimately denied entry to the castle and had to wait in a car during the 90-minute crisis meeting.
Blackfords yesterday refused to be drawn on the case.
