One thing I will take away from the Prince Andrew scandal is the fact that these Royals think travelling around the world for ‘meet and greets’ is considered a ‘career’.

Whilst Prince Charles has made a fortune along the way, on which he pays zero corporate tax, Prince Andrew has also done alright, although he must now do without his £249 000 annual income (around R400 000 a month) from the Sovereign Grant after the Queen sacked him from public duties.

His income from the Queen’s private funds will remain intact, so the man isn’t going hungry.

The sweaty mess accused of forcing a 17-year-old to have sex with him in 2001 has been losing the PR battle for a while now, and even those closest to him realise just how toxic he is.

According to Vanity Fair, the hammer has well and truly come down on Andrew’s royal career:

Last week Prince Charles reportedly went to Sandringham to seek the counsel of his father regarding the Prince Andrew fallout. On Thursday the Telegraph reported that Philip also spoke to Andrew about the scandal over his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein, and said he had to “take his punishment,” per the outlet’s source.

According to the newspaper, Andrew drove the 140 miles to Sandringham on Monday to have lunch with Philip and Charles, just hours before the BBC aired an interview with his accuser, Virginia Roberts Giuffre.

“It was a tense meeting, and Philip told his son he had to take his punishment,” one Sandringham insider told the Telegraph. “There was no screaming or shouting, but Philip told him in no uncertain terms that he had to step down for the sake of the monarchy.”

When Prince Philip, perhaps most famous for decades of epic gaffes, tells his own son that he needs to step down, you know he’s deep in the mire.

Charles, perhaps most famous for his satellite-like ears, also had a go:

Charles also had strong words for his brother. “It was all very civilized, but Charles calmly read him the riot act and told him there was no way back for him in the near future,” the insider said.

“Andrew thought he was being treated harshly as nothing has yet been proved against him, but he accepted the decision.”

Perhaps, many years down the line, we will look back at this mess as the pivotal moment in the dismantling of the monarchy.

Just a few hundred years overdue, but better late than never.

[source:vanityfair]