Prince Andrew is desperately hanging onto the last status symbol of the royal life after he was forced to give up his titles and honours amid mounting pressure.
The disgraced brother of King Charles has locked himself in his luxury, 30-room mansion, Royal Lodge, for which he hasn’t paid rent in more than two decades.
Last week, Buckingham Palace released a statement on behalf of Andrew in which he stated that reason behind giving up the use of his royal titles and honours. He reasoned that since the allegations against him continue to “distract” from the work of the royal family, he took the step after a discussion with the monarch and his “immediate and wider family”.
Following the move, pressure has been building over removal of the shamed royal from the sprawling property as activists from the anti-monarchy group Republic staged a protest at the entrance to Windsor Great Park and Royal Lodge on Tuesday.
Andrew has stayed put at his dimly-lit palatial home as he locks himself up for hours, playing video games, according to The Sun. In details, which could be dubbed as ‘creepy’, the royal surrounds himself with a collection of teddies in his bedroom.
A source revealed that Andrew gets up late in the morning with his dozens of teddy bears, in the master suite. Once he has changed, he has breakfast, spends most of the day watching TV and playing video games on a giant television screen, which almost covers one wall, per the outlet.
The update comes after a National Audit Office report revealed details of Andrew’s 75-year lease on the property in 2003.
One of the key revelations raised criticism as Andrew hasn’t paid rent for almost 22 years and since paid an annual rent of “one peppercorn (if demanded)”.
The ‘peppercorn rent’ refers to the legal time suggesting that this is just a formality like a symbolic amount to make the agreement valid.