Prince Andrew is finished with public life says royal expert

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Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson fear they will be kicked out of the Royal Lodge, the 31-bedroom home they share in Windsor, following the death of the Queen, it has been sensationally claimed. The Duke of York signed a 75-year lease on the residence, located a short drive away from Windsor Castle.

However, Andrew and Sarah’s stay may be cut short if King Charles III decides to review the Royal Family’s vast property portfolio.

A source claimed their permanence at the residence could be a “terrible look” as Britain face the cost-of-living crisis and a difficult winter.

Nevertheless, they said the new King is unlikely to push out his brother and former sister-in-law from the home they still share in the immediate aftermath of the death of Queen Elizabeth II.

The insider told The Sun: “They are no longer under the protection of the Queen but it would seem callous to throw them out so soon after she died. 

“But if he’s doing no duties and rattling around a £30million mansion during the cost-of-living crisis, then it’s a terrible look.”

Another source claimed Andrew and Sarah feared they would be “thrown to the wolves” in the coming months.

According to a 2005 National Audit Office report, should Andrew leave his current home, the Lodge would revert to the Crown Estate – a collection of lands in the UK belonging to the reigning British monarch which is neither owned by the Government nor part of the monarch’s private property.

Upon leaving prior to the end of his lease, Andrew would get “compensation in respect of refurbishment costs”, estimated to be in the region of £7million.  

A spokesman for the Duke of York did not comment. Express.co.uk has contacted the Duke’s representatives for further comment. 

This comes a few weeks after it was reported Sara bought a £5m house in Mayfair, one of London’s most lavish areas.

The residence, believed to have been bought from the Duke of Westminster, has been described by sources as “a long-term investment for daughters Princess Beatrice and Eugenie”.

A spokeswoman for the Duke of York said at the time Andrew had not personally been involved in the purchase. 

The Duke and Duchess of York got married in 1986 and welcomed their two daughters, princesses Eugenie and Beatrice, a few years later.

While their marriage ended in a divorce in 1996 after they split in 1992, Andrew and Sarah remained close for the sake of their children, which they brought up together.

Even after their split and the scandal which invested Sarah following the publication of intimate pictures in British newspapers in 1992, the Duchess continued to live, while not always on a permanent basis, at the Duke’s official residence.

From 1990 to 2004, this was Sunninghill Park was a country house and estate of about 665 acres north of Cheapside. 

The Royal Lodge then became Andrew and his daughters’ official home, after it underwent lengthy renovations.

The Grade-II listed home was originally built to enable King George IV to entertain guests during Royal Ascot.

The Queen Mother used it for decades as her private residence and, during King George VI’s reign, was used as the family’s weekend retreat.

The mother of Queen Elizabeth II died at the Royal Lodge in 2002, and was gifted to Andrew a few months later. 

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