Prince Andrew ignored any rumblings of royal drama as he headed for a ride in Windsor today. The Duke of York, 63, sports a brown ensemble as he rode with a male groom.
Taking no notice of the gloomy December morning, the royal trotted along while chatting to the aide.
Dressed in traditional riding gear, Andrew donned a black hard hat and khaki jacket, while adding a pop of colour with a pink polo neck.
The royal is a regular rider and is often spotted on his horse near his Windsor Park home.
It comes as the father-of-two joined his brothers King Charles and Prince Edward for a pheasant shoot.
Charles, 74, was spotted driving around the grounds of Windsor – just hours before he unveiled new statues of his late parents at the Royal British Legion Festival of Remembrance in London.
The monarch was dressed casually in a shirt and a green jacket with a cord collar for the shoot on Armistice Day.
The King was seen sharing a laugh with the passenger in the car, who was presumably a member of his security team.
Although Andrew and Edward were not pictured with Charles, the monarch is believed to have enjoyed an afternoon in his brothers’ company before heading to London.
The pair have been at loggerheads over Charles’ demands that Andrew and his ex-wife, Sarah, move out of the 30-room royal property – which has problems with damp and requires several million pounds-worth of repairs – into somewhere smaller, such as Harry and Meghan’s old home, Frogmore Cottage.
The Mirror reported last month that Andrew had been granted a ‘stay of execution’ after Charles accepted his brother should be given time to prove he can pay for the mansion’s upkeep.
Multiple well-placed sources in royal circles have told the Mail that the prince isn’t being ‘realistic’ about his financial situation after being forced to step back from public duties.
A family friend said: ‘It’s all a bit cloud cuckoo-land, I’m afraid. No one, not least His Majesty, believes there is any realistic, long-term chance of the Duke of York being able to keep the roof at Royal Lodge over his head.
‘It’s a massive property and estate that requires a huge amount of upkeep.’
The King’s powers to remove Andrew are limited because he took on the late Queen Mother’s Grade II-listed property from the Crown Estate in 2004 on a long-term lease and has funded many millions of pounds worth of renovations. If King Charles did persuade him to move, then the Crown Estate could even end up owing Andrew money.
