‘Lazy’ Prince Andrew ‘allowing himself to be humiliated’ but could change things with simple move

The challenges The Duke of York has faced during the past five years have been well-documented – with his apparent determination to stay at his Royal Lodge home in Windsor being the latest bone of contention. In line with King Charles’ plans to downsize the monarchy, Prince Andrew was offered a move from his mansion to the slightly smaller Frogmore Cottage, which was recently refurbished by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.

She continues: “He could live at Frogmore, which has enough room for Fergie and the rest of the family to visit when they want. It is close to the castle and it would give him the chance to calm down relations with his brother, so what is stopping him? Status. He is hung up on image and grandeur.”

While Royal Lodge has a rich and fascinating history, much of which is tied to the life of Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother, recent pictures highlighted the home’s state of disrepair, something which Jennie says will have made the late monarch consider other possibilities. “I think the late Queen probably realised that it didn’t look good to have a disgraced Prince living in a mansion for a peppercorn rent. Andrew was very much in awe of his mother and would have obeyed her if she had put her foot down and asked him to leave. Charles’s big squeeze on his brother has been a long time coming and his patience has run out. It is interesting that the Queen was apparently of a like mind.”

Reflecting on how the ongoing debate looks to the public after Prince Andrew’s very public fall from grace, Jennie adds: “This is not just money, it is how it looks: an idle and disgraced Duke swanning around on his horse, watching aircraft taking off or landing on a big screen and driving his Range Rover about his sizeable estate with no visible means of income except what his mother, and now his big brother, choose to give him. It’s not a good image.”

It has often been reported that the plan was to have the Duke move from Royal Lodge and relocate a short distance away to Frogmore Cottage which was vacated by Prince Harry and Meghan after they gave it a £2.4 million renovation.