Prince Andrew 'was frustrated about not being destined to be king,' new book claims
Prince Andrew has removed himself from the public eye after a series of scandals
In Prince Andrew news, the duke reportedly struggled with his position in the royal family – a book has claimed.
The book has also made claims about the Duke of York’s treatment of staff members.
The allegations come from Yes Ma’am: The Secret Life of Royal Servant. The upcoming book is written by royal author and journalist Tom Quinn. It is due to be released on February 18, 2025.
The book draws on alleged testimonies from royal staff over the years. It paints an unflattering picture of Andrew, 64, as “imperious, bossy, and bad-tempered”.
Some former servants even reportedly described him as “a classic school bully”.
Prince Andrew was ‘frustrated about not being the first-born’
One former staff member allegedly shared insights into Prince Andrew’s apparent resentment over his role in the line of succession.
They compared him to Princess Margaret, Queen Elizabeth II’s younger sister – who also reportedly struggled with being second in line.
“A bit like his aunt Margaret, Andrew always behaved as if he was frustrated about not being the first-born and therefore destined to become king. This frustration made him a bit of a bully in private, I think,” the staffer reportedly recalled in an extract seen by the Daily Mail.
“If he liked a member of his staff, he could be very loyal and supportive. But he couldn’t resist being imperious and bossy and bad-tempered if anything went wrong or wasn’t done exactly to his liking. Some members of his staff, I won’t say a majority, privately thought he was the classic school bully – just the sort of person who used to bully his brother Charles at Gordonstoun [Charles’ former school].”
Among the most shocking claims in Tom’s book is that Andrew allegedly demanded a staffer be removed simply because he had a mole on his face.
Another incident saw the prince order the removal of an employee for wearing a nylon tie.
Duke of York accused of being ‘overbearing’
The book also revisits allegations of Andrew’s “overbearing” behaviour towards palace staff.
In 2022, Paul Page, a former royal protection officer, accused Andrew of being “overbearing” and “verbally abusive”.
Speaking to The Sunday Mirror, Paul stated: “The palace has a problem because there are instances and evidence of Prince Andrew being overbearing and verbally abusive.”
Prince Andrew ‘was not easy to deal with’
Elsewhere in the new book, it’s claimed that Prince Andrew’s alleged difficult reputation extended beyond staff to his senior advisers and even his mother’s press secretary.
“He was not easy as an adviser to deal with. He was very arrogant indeed,” one former senior courtier claimed. “That arrogance could have stemmed from a lack of self-confidence. He is not at all bright.”
Another reported incident involved Andrew cursing out the queen’s press secretary over something as trivial as an umbrella.
Andrew has been largely absent from public life in recent years following a series of scandals.
These include his association with late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and more recent allegations regarding his ties to an alleged Chinese spy.
In 2022, Andrew settled a sexual assault civil court case with his accuser Virginia Giuffre for an undisclosed sum. Andrew has always denied allegations of sexual assault.
In recent weeks, he has faced renewed scrutiny after emails emerged seemingly suggesting he had been in contact with Epstein for longer than he originally claimed in his BBC Newsnight interview in late 2019.
Royal Insider has contacted reps for Andrew and for the palace for comment.
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