Carole Radziwill is clearing the air about her past friendship with convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell, her name appearing in the Jeffrey Epstein files and an unexpected dinner with former Prince Andrew.
The “Real Housewives of New York City” star addressed the connections during season 16, episode 6, after the cast’s trip to Moskito Island raised questions about her relationship with Maxwell.
Carole also opened up on “The Real Housewives of New York City After Show,” admitting that figuring out how to discuss her past with Maxwell has been difficult.
“On the one hand, I don’t want to be dismissive about it,” Carole explained, adding that she also didn’t want to appear defensive. “It’s just, like, I can’t be more transparent in this.”
Maxwell is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for her role in helping Epstein sexually abuse underage girls.
Carole insisted that while she knew Maxwell socially more than two decades ago, she had no knowledge of Epstein’s crimes.
Carole Radziwill Explains How Her Friendship With Ghislaine Maxwell Started
According to Carole, she first connected with Maxwell in 1999, shortly after her husband, Anthony Radziwill, died.
Carole was visiting London alone when Maxwell unexpectedly called to offer her condolences. Maxwell also offered to arrange dinner with some friends to help Carole during a difficult time.
The two later crossed paths regularly in New York City’s social circles, although Carole said their relationship was never particularly close.
“In the early 2000s, it would be strange if you didn’t go out to a big event in New York and Ghislaine wasn’t there,” Carole explained during the RHONY episode.
“I was friendly with her. We had a couple mutual girlfriends. And when I would see Ghislaine, it would always be with these mutual girlfriends.”
She made one thing particularly clear.
“She was never one of my close friends.”
Carole also described Maxwell as someone who knew countless people in New York society.
“She had a thousand friends, of which I was one of a thousand,” Carole explained on the after-show.
Why Her Name Appears in the Jeffrey Epstein Files
Carole reveals her connection to Epstein. Sai is skeptical of her explanation. #RHONY pic.twitter.com/lSPgbpEWCB
— 𝒾𝓈𝓃𝓉𝒹𝒶𝓋𝑒𝑜𝓃𝑒 (@IsntDaveOne) October 14, 2026
Carole also addressed why her name appears in documents connected to the Epstein investigation.
“If you Google me right now, it says that my name is in the Epstein file,” she told her RHONY castmates.
The documents include personal emails Carole and Maxwell exchanged. One of those messages appeared during episode 6.
However, Carole said the correspondence was just occasional dinner invitations and questions about social events.
“They said exactly what I’ve been saying for years,” she explained. “Yes, I knew her 20 years ago. Yes, I even considered her, at one point, a friend.”
Carole also denied ever meeting Epstein or visiting his private island, Little Saint James.
“I never knew Jeffrey Epstein. I never heard of him. Ghislaine never spoke about him,” she told the women.
The reality star said she was horrified when she eventually learned about Maxwell’s involvement in Epstein’s crimes.
“It does shake me to think that I knew someone and would even, like… call her a friend who, then, 20 years later, turned out to be a monster,” she admitted.
Being named in the documents does not establish involvement in Epstein’s criminal activities.
Carole Radziwill Reveals Ghislaine Maxwell Arranged a Dinner With Prince Andrew
One of the more unexpected revelations involved Carole’s connection to former Prince Andrew.
Carole revealed that Maxwell arranged a dinner with the former Duke of York during her 1999 trip to London.
The invitation apparently came almost immediately after Maxwell first contacted her.
“I would say a half an hour later, maybe even less, I get a call on my little Nokia phone from the Duke of York, Prince Andrew,” Carole recalled.
“He’s like, ‘Let me take you to dinner.'”
Naturally, her RHONY castmates wanted to know whether anything romantic happened.
When asked whether she kissed Andrew, Carole quickly shut down the speculation.
“No. We went to dinner, and that was it. It was kind of unmemorable.”
Andrew lost his royal titles in 2025 amid the ongoing fallout surrounding his association with Epstein.
Why Her Friendship With Ghislaine Maxwell Came to an End
Carole also explained that she and Maxwell didn’t have a dramatic falling-out.
Instead, their friendship simply faded over time.
“It’s like any friendship that sort of wasn’t that deep. We just kind of drifted apart,” she told her castmates.
Looking back, Carole believes Maxwell may have been more interested in her connections and famous last name than in developing a genuine friendship.
“She was like a social climber, so if you had money, access to money, power, or, say, a very famous last name, she made it her business to know you,” Carole explained.
Carole also admitted that Maxwell didn’t fit the image she would have expected of someone involved in such serious crimes.
“If you lined up 10 women and said, ‘Which one was part of an international sex trafficking ring?’, it would not be her,” she said.
During the after-show, Carole described Maxwell as “kind of nerdy” and said she didn’t drink or use drugs.
She also recalled Maxwell having a boyfriend whom Carole considered nice.
“Maybe this is part of it,” Carole explained. “She felt, like, safe to be around because she was kind of like, you know, took care of things and, like, she was always out.”
Although Carole said she understands why people have questions about her former friendship, she maintained that she had no knowledge of Maxwell’s criminal activities.
Tell us! Do you think there is more to Carole’s relationship with Maxwell than she is letting on? Let us know in the comments below.
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