According to broadcaster Emily Maitlis, who conducted Prince Andrew’s infamous Newsnight interview, the King had planned to visit his brother at Royal Lodge – but it ultimately didn’t happen
King Charles was going to be seen passing Royal Lodge to read Prince Andrew the riot act before a U-turn, it has been claimed. Maitlis, who famously grilled Andrew in his car-crash Newsnight interview, alleged the plan had been put in place when the King arrived back in the UK from his trip to the Vatican last week.
Last Thursday, broadcast crews and photographers gathered outside the gates of Royal Lodge amid speculation there could be further developments in the long-running controversy surrounding the late Queen’s second son. It comes as Andrew is facing increasing calls to vacate his 30-room Windsor mansion amid the continuing furore over his links to paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, and the ‘peppercorn’ rent deal he has for the property.
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And speaking on her News Agents podcast, Maitlis claimed that the media had gathered at Royal Lodge on the day the King prayed with together with Pope Leo in a historic moment after a “tip off”.
She said: “What we learned what was going to happen on Thursday was that Charles, fresh from the Vatican and his audience with the Pope, was going to come via Royal Lodge to be seen in other words, reading the riot act to his brother.”
“Nobody was going to film the conversation or see him stepping out the car but there was going to be the moment caught on camera of King Charles’s car heading to Royal Lodge.
“What happened, I understand, was that the Palace then got very nervous, and when they saw the choppers and helicopters, they thought this has all got too big, this has got out of control, they cancelled the whole thing. The King just went straight home and never came by.” The Mirror has contacted Buckingham Palace for comment.
It comes as pressure is mounting on Andrew to be hauled in front of MPs over his Royal Lodge lease – as the King was heckled by a protestor over his disgraced brother yesterday.
Andrew is said to be in talks with Charles’ representatives about leaving Royal Lodge, where he has lived for more than 20 years.
But calls are getting louder for him to also testify to a Commons select committee on the use of taxpayer money after it emerged he has lived in effectively rent-free in the Crown Estate property since 2003.
The King had attempted to brush off any family drama as he visited the West Midlands to attend a special service at the Cathedral yesterday morning.
During a walkabout after the service, one protestor shouted: “How long have you known about Andrew and Epstein?” as the King passed by, with footage of the incident posted to social media.
However, others in the crowd tried to drown out the heckler by shouting “God Save The King” while others told him to “Shut up” with Charles ignoring the shouts.
It came after Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey demanded the Public Accounts Committee launched a probe into whether taxpayer cash has subsidised Andrew’s living arrangements.
He told the BBC Today Programme: “I think by disgracing his office Prince Andrew is relinquishing the rights to special treatment at the expense of the taxpayer, and Parliament are the guardians of the taxpayer.
“And what I think would be the best thing to happen is a select committee inquiry into how the Crown Estate has managed that support, and that officials from the Crown Estate and Prince Andrew should come to give evidence.
“The focus has been around the Royal Lodge, which I, as I understand it, is where the taxpayer may or may not have been supporting the Prince. But we just need some more transparency about this.”
