EXCLUSIVE: 'An Astonishingly Rude Freeloader' — Top Royal Insiders Give Damning Verdict on Shamed Prince Andrew's Secret Life as a 'Leech' on Taxpayers
Prince Andrew continues to be bashed left and right.
Oct. 27 2025, Published 7:25 p.m. ET
Prince Andrew has been branded "arrogant," "rude," and "astonishingly entitled" by former officials and insiders who worked alongside him, with some describing him as a man who "likes to get things for free," RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The fresh wave of criticism follows renewed public anger over revelations the 65-year-old royal has lived rent-free for years in his 30-room Royal Lodge mansion near Windsor Castle.
Former Officials Describe Andrew's 'Entitlement'
Former officials called Andrew arrogant and entitled.'
The disgraced Prince – who stepped back from royal duties in 2019 following his association with Jeffrey Epstein – has faced mounting pressure to vacate the property after it emerged that he has been paying a "peppercorn rent" for decades. Now, those who worked with him say this behavior fits a long-established pattern of freeloading and entitlement.
One former senior government source, who met Andrew while he was Britain's special trade envoy between 2001 and 2011, said the Prince was "clearly bored and underemployed." They said Andrew pushed the government "to underwrite his travel, on the basis it was promoting UK PLC."
Author Andrew Lownie, who interviewed former officials and diplomats for his book Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York, said: "He absolutely pushed the government to cover expenses. People rubber-stamped stuff because he was a royal. The Foreign Office didn't feel they could do anything. The problem was, he wasn't properly supervised.
"No one quite knew who was in charge. So he was left to run his own show. He likes to get things for free. It's back to the sense of entitlement – that the taxpayer owes him everything."
'Arrogant, Rude, and Abrasive'
Andrew pushed the government to pay for his travel.'
Dai Davies, who headed Scotland Yard's Royal Protection Command from 1994 to 1998, described Andrew as "arrogant, rude, and abrasive." He said the Prince often treated staff dismissively and recalled one particular phone exchange that shook him.
Davies added: "He wanted to speak to someone of higher rank than me. I remember telling my wife afterwards, 'God, that man is an arrogant so and so.'"
Diplomats Recall Awkward Incidents
Sir Ivor Roberts claimed Andrew showed no grace to his staff
Sir Ivor Roberts, the UK's former ambassador to Ireland and Italy, said the same traits were evident during his official visits. "I found a sense of entitlement in Andrew," he said.
"He was pretty graceless in his approach to my staff." Roberts recalled being told to cancel a golf game during a trip to Ireland in 2001 because, as a member of Andrew's team warned him, "he's such a bad loser, it will create a problem if he doesn't win." Ironically, the diplomat said he was later reprimanded by Andrew for not arranging any golf at all.
Roberts also remembered an incident in Italy when the Prince insulted a member of the Schiaparelli fashion family, telling her, "I've never heard of you."
The ambassador said he had to "smooth ruffled feathers" afterward. "I don't think anyone thought he would be God's gift to trade promotion," he said. "I think it was just a way of keeping him employed."
'Absolutely Stuck on Status'
Never Miss an
Daily updates from the heart of Hollywood, right to your inbox
By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you’re agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
The Prince insulted a member of the Schiaparelli family in Italy.
Royal commentator Jennie Bond, who has met Andrew several times, echoed the sentiment.
She said: "From my own experience, and from the many people I've spoken to who know him, it always comes back to the same word – arrogant. People find him self-serving and self-centred. I don't think I've heard anyone say a good word about him, apart from his immediate family."
She recalled a conversation with Andrew after the 1992 Windsor Castle fire, saying: "I asked him in a human way, 'How is your mother doing?' He looked affronted and said, 'Her Majesty the Queen you mean.' "He made clear I should have used the full title. It's a small illustration of how he is absolutely stuck on status."
