King Charles could soon exile Prince Andrew to a rural highland castle after stripping him of his remaining titles in the wake of his ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
Despite giving up his knighthood, dukedom and his Garter role, questions have been raised about why the Prince is allowed to remain in the Royal Lodge.
Now the King is under pressure to take more action against his brother, although sources suggest he has gone as far as he can.
Some sources have suggested that the monarch is trying to persuade Andrew to move to the Castle of Mey.
The property, in the rural highlands, was originally built for Mary Caroline, the Duchess of Sutherland.
If he moves there, Andrew would live alongside Alice, the resident donkey of the Castle of Mey, who loves a conversation, according to the website.
The estate also has rabbits, a wooden cow named Daisy, and ducklings, goslings and chicks.
Royal author Andrew Lownie also suggested that Andrew could move to what he calls ‘Scotland’s most dismal town’.
But that may not be the final stop for Andrew – Lownie speculates: ‘…it’s more likely that Air Miles Andy would end up somewhere like Abu Dhabi, where he has a standing offer of the use of a salubrious palace courtesy of the ruling house of Nahyan.’
Royal expert Duncan Larcombe tells Metro what could be next for Prince Andrew
‘I would find it very unlikely that Andrew would ever agree to go up there and live. I think it would be far more likely that he will give up Royal Lodge, reluctantly, and move into something more modest. He’s very close to his two girls, and he has to consider what it means for Fergie,’ Larcombe told Metro.
‘For the two of them to be retired off to a castle in rural Scotland, it’s like something out of a Brothers Grimm tale, isn’t it?
‘I think Frogmore Cottage is a more manageable size, and it would be ideal if he moved there.
‘But from Prince Andrew’s point of view, he probably feels entitled to live a life without ever having to worry about money because of the family that he’s a part of.
‘We can say he’s stubborn, and he probably is, but at the same time, I think if it were anyone else in that family, in a normal family of wealthy people, I think there’d be an awful lot of bitterness and trouble between the siblings.’
If he opts to put down roots in Castle of Mey, he’ll call the estate, which dates back to 1573, his new home.
It was passed between the Earls of Caithness for centuries before it was sold to Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother in 1952. King Charles owns it now.
She renovated it and would visit each October for a few weeks, and King Charles has also been a visitor since he was a child.
The Castle of Mey
The interiors are a bit dated, but still fit for a royal (Picture: Facebook)
Conversation around a potential ‘exile’ of Andrew comes amid heightened talks about his place in the Royal Lodge, which he’s called home for around 20 years.
A copy of the disgraced royal’s lease shows that he paid ‘one peppercorn (if demanded)’ of rent per year since 2003.
The rent for the Royal Lodge is about £260,000 a year, but Andrew is considered to have paid it up front for funding renovation work.
The lease, obtained by The Times, also shows that the prince paid £1 million for the lease plus at least £7.5 million for refurbishments in 2005.
Yet how Andrew affords to live in the home has been questioned by campaigners after King Charles cut off financial support for him last year.
Charles removed Andrew’s £1million annual allowance, leaving his only declared income as a £20,000 naval pension.
