Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s mysterious income finally resolved | Royal | News

Have we finally discovered how Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor funded his lavish lifestyle after he stopped receiving his royal income? The National Audit Office investigation into royal properties found that the former prince pocketed extra income from subletting cottages at his Royal Lodge estate in Windsor.

This is despite him paying just a peppercorn rent himself for 20 years… the interesting part is that we have no idea how much money he made as a landlord. Sources claim Andrew did not generate a profit and the rent was set at a rate to only cover maintenance and running costs for staff.

He sent the rental rate and the money came directly to him – even after he moved out of the property in disgrace following revelations about his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein. The payments have now ceased, but we’re not told what the rent was and how much he actually funnelled back into the properties in upkeep.

For years, there’s been something of a mystery over where Andrew’s money came from. His Windsor mansion required significant sums of money towards its upkeep and he was reluctant to scale back on the luxuries he was afforded as a working royal.

The former prince’s only declared source of income was his modest £20,000 a year pension from his 22 years in the Royal Navy. Money was also needed for his police security after the King stopped forking out for it during the infamous siege of Royal Lodge.

He is likely to have received bequests from relatives and money from business dealings, but the rental income goes some way in explaining one of the mysteries of the modern monarch.

Congratulations to newlyweds Peter Phillips and Harriet Sperling, who tied the knot at All Saints Church, Kemble, yesterday in front of their nearest and dearest.

It was a strong show of support from members of the Royal Family, with even the King and Queen sharing in the joy before dashing more than 100 miles to the Epsom Derby. And though the weather didn’t behave itself – with torrential downpours and black skies – the rain didn’t dampen the celebrations.

One of the findings in the probe into royal properties I find most striking is that the late Queen Elizabeth reneged on her decision to have her cousin, Prince Michael of Kent, start paying his own rent. In the 2000s, a huge row embroiled the so-called ‘Rent a Kent’s’ after it emerged the non-working royal couple were paying just £69 a week to live in their five-bedroom, five-reception room apartment at Kensington Palace.

MPs demanded they pay their fair share, prompting the late Queen to step in and cover their £10,000-a-month. Buckingham Palace then said in a statement: “It has now been agreed that, from 2010, Prince and Princess Michael of Kent will remain at their apartment but pay the rent from their own funds.”

However, this never happened. The monarch continued to cover the rent, and now the King does, too. A change of heart, as one source described it, but it’s disappointing this was never disclosed.

Cancer isn’t just about the physical effects it has on your body; the diagnosis, treatment and reality of living with the disease can also have a significant impact on your mental health and wellbeing. And that’s why the Princess of Wales visited The Christie, a cancer hospital in Manchester last Thursday.

She wanted to shine a light on the holistic work it does, with free holistic therapies as well as drop-in art classes, a wellbeing garden and a chaplaincy service. They target the stress, depression, fear and anxiety that many patients experience.

Catherine, who knows first-hand what many of these patients are going through, spoke repeatedly about how the disease “changes you in mind, body and spirit”. The princess used nature and the great outdoors to help her through her six months of chemotherapy and the wider impact of the disease.

But she also used the visit to highlight the impact on loved ones, acknowledging to one patient the effect it had on her children and parents.