Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell were Prince Andrew's special guests at a royal event

Another shocking detail has emerged about Prince Andrew's association with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, and Ghislaine Maxwell, his ex-girlfriend and alleged accomplice.

A special ball event named "Dance of the Decades," was held by the British royal family two decades ago to celebrate the 40th birthday of Prince Andrew, the 100th birthday of the late Queen Mother, the 70th birthday of the late Princess Margaret, and the 50th birthday of Princess Anne. A souvenir booklet from the party obtained by Mail Online has revealed that Jeffrey Epstein and his partner, Ghislaine Maxwell, were given a high place of honour at the event.

According to the report, the convicted sex offender and his alleged girlfriend at the time were Prince Andrew's special guests at the star-studded party held at Windsor Castle on June 21, 2000. The never-before-seen guest list for the evening is another piece of evidence pointing to Epstein's close association with the Duke of York, who has repeatedly denied involvement in the financier's criminal affairs.

Andrew claimed in his infamous BBC interview that Maxwell, who has been accused of helping Epstein in trafficking and sexually abusing multiple underage girls, was only invited at the royal event as the convicted offender's "plus one." Epstein and Maxwell are named separately on the list, in accordance with the royal protocol that dictates only couples who are married or engaged be named together.

The ball was followed by another invitation for Epstein and Maxwell, who were hosted by Andrew at Sandringham for a "straightforward shooting weekend." In March the following year, the three were rocked by a scandal after Epstein's alleged "sex slave" Virginia Guiffree claimed she was also forced to sleep with the British royal when she was 17, at Maxwell's London townhouse.

Epstein and Maxwell's shenanigans at the royal events went unnoticed at that time, as he was not arrested for child sex trafficking until 2006. Musician Graham Dalby, who was performing at the "Dance of the Decades" with his swing band the "Grahamphones," recalled about the convicted criminal: "I wouldn't have known who Epstein was, he wasn't known."

"I mean I recognized all sorts of famous people in amongst all the titles, Jackie Stewart the racing driver was there, but certainly that's not a man I would have gone, 'there's Jeffrey Epstein' because he meant nothing to me," Dalby added.