Just days after the former prince broke his cover for the first time since being stripped of his titles, royal expert Jennie Bond believes the Prince and Princess of Wales have taken pity on the disgraced royal for one major reason
07:00, 22 Nov 2025Updated 07:30, 22 Nov 2025
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has been shown grace and understanding from William and Kate (Image: Getty Images)
With Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor breaking his cover for the first time since being stripped of his royal titles and kicked out of the Royal Lodge, a royal expert believes the former prince’s neighbours, Prince William and Princess Kate, would have mixed opinions about his photographed horse-riding endeavour as he continues to be plagued by allegations about his connection to Jeffrey Epstein.
The Prince and Princess of Wales live just miles away from Andrew in Forest Lodge after moving into the Grade II-listed mansion earlier this month, while Andrew is awaiting his move from his home of more than 20 years to a smaller abode on the Sandringham estate in Norfolk.
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Andrew was spotted for the first time since he was stripped of his royal titles(Image: Getty Images)
With Andrew being spotted for the first time since he was stripped of titles, former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond believes William and Kate would be showing a level of grace to the disgraced royal as he continues to hide from the spotlight.
Jennie told the Mirror: “While there is no love lost between William, Catherine and Andrew, my understanding is that they, and the rest of the royal family, believe they still have a duty of care for his welfare and mental health. Andrew is reported to have become isolated, depressed and solitary.
“It’s not his fault if photographers are ready to pounce if he dares to venture out, and I don’t think the Prince and Princess would begrudge him a ride around the park and some fresh air. Obviously it would be more convenient if it wasn’t on their doorstep, but they know that this is about to end and he will be living miles away in Sandringham.”
William and Kate live close by to Andrew in the Forest Lodge on the Windsor estate (Image: Getty Images)
The royal expert also believes that King Charles would be less than thrilled with the photos snapped of Andrew horse-riding on the Windsor estate, as the former prince continues to dominate headlines and overshadow the rest of the Firm’s work.
She said: “I think the King will feel it’s unfortunate that pictures of Andrew are in the press again, drawing attention away from the work the rest of the family are doing. It would obviously be much better if Andrew were seen doing something for charity, or anything other than idly amusing himself. However, he is so toxic that no-one wants him anywhere near their organisation.”
A royal source echoed Jennie’s claims, telling the Daily Mail: “It’s really not a good look. The King won’t be happy that his brother has been photographed riding in the grounds of Windsor Castle, which after all is funded by the taxpayer.”
William has long had a strained relationship with his disgraced uncle
Prince William has long been at odds with his uncle, with reports emerging that the Prince of Wales played a key role in King Charles’ decision to formally strip Andrew of his royal titles, just weeks after the former prince announced he would give up the use of his titles voluntarily.
Andrew Lownie, who wrote the blistering biography Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York earlier this year, told the Mirror that Prince William will have likely helped when it came to “stiffening” his father’s resolve that something more formal had to be done about Andrew, and that the disgraced former duke voluntarily giving up his titles was not enough, with Charles finally realising “how serious it is”.
“From what I know of him and his father, William would have played quite an active role in stiffening Charles’ resolve,” Lownie revealed. “But I think particularly after Charles was heckled and the continuing press coverage – which was a distraction from all the other things he wanted to do, like pray at the Vatican – he’s realised just how serious this is.”
Kate is understood to have “fully supported” Charles’ decision to boot Andrew out, alongside her husband, as Lownie said: “I think they are distancing themselves from Andrew quite rightly. They don’t want further reputational damage to the monarchy from being linked to him.”
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