Prince Andrew exchanged friendly chat with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein after the date he said he had broken off contact with his former friend, according to court documents freshly revealed.

The disgraced Duke of York, 64, wrote to the late serial sex trafficker on the same day a photo of him with then-17-year-old Virginia Giuffre emerged, a court has heard.

Prince Andrew told Jeffrey Epstein that they would “play some more soon” two months after he claims to have ended contact with the convicted paedophile. Newly surfaced messages have revealed the Duke of York remained in contact with the disgraced financier until February 2011 - despite having claimed to have cut him off in December 2010.

Prince Andrew is under fire after Donald Trump's new FBI chief vowed to "do everything" to expose those linked to Jeffrey Epstein.

“Keep in close touch and we’ll play some more soon!!!!” read an email sent to Epstein from an unnamed royal, believed to be Andrew, in February 2011, the outlets said. In another email, sent in June 2010, Epstein asked the royal if he could “find time to show jes around with vera that would be fun.” The royal then asked who Vera was.

Prince Andrew is understood to have kept in contact with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein for longer than he originally claimed.