Is Prince Andrew going to go broke?
Things are definitely not looking good for Queen Elizabeth’s third (and allegedly favorite) child. As we previously reported, his mother finally bit the bullet and stripped him of all his royal and military titles. Now, he’s facing down a potentially very expensive sexual assault lawsuit with no support from “The Firm.”
According to Page Six, despite the recent sale of his and ex Sarah Ferguson’s Swiss chalet for $23 million, he still owes $8.2 million to the original owner. His legal and PR fees are likely to cost around $3 million, per recent reports, and settling the actual suit could cost as much as $13.6 million. And now, he has absolutely no income to rely on.
A royal source told UK tabloid The Mirror he didn’t prepare because, well, he really didn’t see this coming:
“Until very recently it appears the absolute enormity of this case and the consequences he faces has not hit him (Andrew). Now the bills are mounting up and the possibility of a settlement, or even worse a judgement against him, is being widely discussed; he fears complete financial ruin.”
The insider continued:
“Andrew thought, indeed he was advised, that this would all go away in time, and neither has happened, leaving him facing an extraordinary uphill battle to even salvage any crumb of his reputation.”
And not just his rep. They added:
“There is a very real prospect of him being completely broke.”
The outlet claimed the Queen “would not assist” the Duke of York in paying the settlement, although “it has been suggested” that she would continue to pay his $400k per year security costs if he does in fact go broke. (Controversial, because lack of security has been one of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s big gripes with the royal fam, even very recently.)
The Mirror reported that the 61-year-old was given only two hours notice last week before his meeting with mum, in which she broke the bad news about losing his titles. That said, the prince was apparently “fully aware what was coming” this time. Prince William and Prince Charles have been “infuriated” by the situation, and when Andrew lost his bid to have the suit thrown out, he had “run out of road” with his family, according to one source.
Now, though he will “continue to fight to clear his name,” he does so as a “private citizen”… with all the risks and all the cost that any other person might face.
It’s hard to imagine the Queen will let her favorite become completely destitute, so we’ll see how desperate Andrew’s situation actually gets. He’ll have to make money somehow, but who wants to work with the royal outcast? Maybe he could sell a memoir? No Sweat: The Prince Andrew Story? As with his infamous 2019 interview, we’re not sure how many people would buy it…
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