They say that Christmas is the most important time of the year for families to reconnect and put their differences, and shortcomings, aside. But every family has its limits – and the royal family is no different. Earlier this week, it was reported that Prince Andrew had landed himself in hot water yet again, and – in the aftermath – has had his invite to the royals’ annual Christmas Day celebrations at Sandringham rescinded, after it was revealed he’d held a close friendship with an alleged Chinese spy. The revelations, which started to mount last week and reached a crescendo on Monday after a judge lifted a court order granting the Chinese businessman anonymity, sent shockwaves straight to Buckingham Palace – where King Charles, yet again, was left bewildered by his younger brother’s behaviour. Now, we’re told, the monarch feels he has no choice but to exclude Andrew…potentially cutting his final ties to royal life in the process. According to insiders, the Duke of York has landed himself in hot water for the final time.
'The drama and embarrassment with Andrew just never seem to end,' says a royal insider in the wake of further revelations linking the fallen prince to Yang Tengbo, the alleged spy who was banned from re-entering the UK in 2023 on national security grounds but who released a statement to say he was no longer seeking to remain anonymous and had done 'nothing wrong or unlawful”, adding,' the widespread description of me as a "spy" is entirely untrue.'
'Andrew is an absolute disaster, but no one can contain him,' our source continues. 'He seems to have a knack for humiliating himself, and the royals in the process.
'It’s no secret that Charles is already at the end of his rope, and this has only exacerbated things. Andrew was quick to distance himself from Tengbo as soon as he learned about the dodgy spy connection, but the feeling at the palace is that he ought to have done better due diligence at the time. If it were anyone else in the family, they might get a bit of sympathy, but Andrew has put his foot in it so many times. He’s just a walking PR nightmare.'
It’s safe to say that the prince’s fall from grace has been one of the sharpest declines in recent royal history. In 2019, he 'stepped back from royal duties for the foreseeable future' after his close friendship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was exposed. The late Queen – who’s believed to have always had a soft spot for Andrew – had no choice but to publicly chastise her favourite son and strip him of all his titles and privileges. But it wasn’t until 2021 that the proverbial really hit the fan, after a US judge allowed Virginia Giuffre to proceed in her civil sexual abuse case against Andrew – alleging that, at the age of 17, she was trafficked by Epstein to have sex with the royal on three separate occasions. Andrew always vehemently denied the claims – including in his now infamous Newsnight interview – but, in March 2022, he reached a multimillion pound out-of-court settlement with Virginia, avoiding a trial in the process.
Ever since, the 64 year old has, by all accounts, been considered 'the royal pariah' of the family, and has duly kept his distance from all public-facing events. Indeed, over the past two years, his one slither of clemency has been at Christmas time, when King Charles has cautiously included him in his annual celebration at Sandringham – even inviting Andrew’s ex-wife, and still his closest confidant, Sarah Ferguson to join the brood for lunch last year. But now, we’re told, Charles feels he has no choice but to cut his final ties with his brother, who – following the events of the past few weeks – has proven yet again just what a liability he can be. We’re told that, at a time when the royal family has been left compromised by a myriad of health concerns (including the King and the Princess of Wales’ respective cancer battles), the King is determined to make this Christmas as drama-free as possible, which means brutally separating the wheat from the chaff around his dinner table. Sadly for Andrew, this makes him – yet again – persona non grata.
'People in the royal firm are just wringing their hands, wondering how much leniency or tolerance they can possibly show Andrew before they just fling him out on his ear for good,' says our source. 'He’s not done anything technically wrong here, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that he’s once again at the centre of an unsavoury scandal. The family, especially Charles and Camilla, are sick and tired of him stressing them out. They’ve gone above and beyond to tolerate him, but here he is again, causing them shame and humiliation.'
As Christmas Day approaches, neither the royals nor Andrew’s camp have publicly commented on his involvement in the festivities – but the disgraced prince has made efforts to distance himself from the whole 'Chinese spy' fiasco. Last week, a statement from his office said he had 'ceased all contact with the individual after concerns were raised' and insisted that “nothing of a sensitive nature [was] ever discussed” – but, as the days passed, his former friendship and business dealings with Yang Tengbo became all the more evident.
The Chinese businessman, who was named in court on Monday after losing his appeal to reenter the UK, reportedly leveraged his friendship with Andrew to gain access to high-ranking officials, and even secure meetings with former prime ministers David Cameron and Theresa May. Tengbo, who denies he’s a spy and says he’s “done nothing wrong or unlawful” – despite allegations he’s been used by the Chinese state to exert influence on the West – was invited to Andrew’s birthday party in 2020, and was also reportedly told he could act on the latter’s behalf when dealing with potential investors in China.
Now, despite cutting all ties with Tengbo, it seems that Andrew’s found his name caught up in one scandal too many. As the dust settles, we’re told his future involvement with his family is hanging in the balance, and – with his daughters Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie spending the festive period with their in-laws this year – it’s shaping up to be a very lonely Christmas indeed.