Royal Lodge, and the optics of Prince Andrew living in it, has been a problem for a long time, but never has the attention been this intense.
And the solution to that issue really isn’t simple.
Yes, all the chatter this week has been around moving him into two other properties we’ve heard a lot about in the past: Frogmore Cottage, Harry and Meghan’s old house, and Adelaide Cottage, the home of the Prince and Princess of Wales, which we believe they’re imminently moving out of.
Both apparently are options being looked at as a new home for Prince Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson. Both of them are substantially smaller than Royal Lodge, but I can’t help but wonder if they are really the best options.
What’s been clear from the noise over the past week is that people want Prince Andrew to be further punished. Giving up the privilege of using his titles was not enough, which is why there have been calls for him to lose Royal Lodge.
As Baroness Helena Kennedy KC, one outspoken critic, said to us last week: “I think he should be losing the house in Windsor Park because it’s a symbol of status, it’s a stately home with all those bedrooms, he doesn’t need that.
“It’s a symbol of power, a symbol of entitlement, and it’s got to go.”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
And protesters from the anti-monarchy group Republic unfurled a banner outside the gates of the property last week, too, calling for him to go.
So, how will it be viewed if he just moves into another lavish property, on the beautiful and secluded Windsor Estate?
Follow our channel and never miss an update.
Read more:
King heckled over Andrew and Epstein
Pressure grows for Andrew to be stripped of dukedom
Several charities cut ties with Duchess of York over Epstein email
Why Andrew hasn’t given up being a prince
I’m not entirely sure it’ll be seen as a satisfactory outcome or enough for those who believe he has further to go in his fall from grace, despite Prince Andrew continuing to deny all of the allegations against him.
However, you have to remember it would probably suit the royals to keep him close.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
As one former palace insider said to me, there’s always been a feeling that it’s been best to keep him on the Windsor Estate, where people can keep an eye on him, both in terms of what he is doing and security.
There has also been a sense that it would maybe be unfair to others outside of the estate to have Andrew as their neighbour and the potential security disruptions that would come with that.
👉 Listen to Sky News Daily on your podcast app 👈
While properties on the Windsor Estate are leased by the Crown Estate, there will also be family discussions going on about what’s for the best.
And while we have a new King, you do wonder how much the thoughts of Queen Elizabeth II will still be at play.
It was suggested to me by one royal source that in her final years, it was Prince Andrew, Sarah Ferguson and their two daughters that were Elizabeth’s most regular visitors.
The King may be under pressure to act, but how much would he want to go against his mother’s wishes when it comes to what he does next regarding his brother?
But with this story making front pages for over a week now, a disaster in PR terms, there is no doubt that something, or someone in this case, will need to move. We wait to see when that may be.
