Members of the Royal Family have been frequenting the area surrounding their Sandringham estate for more than 100 years, but it seems like locals won't be welcoming one new addition to the neighborhood. The former Prince Andrew is set to move into a home on the estate after he's been stripped of his titles and evicted from Royal Lodge by King Charles. As he packs up his former home, the Telegraph spoke to a number of residents in the Sandringham area—none of whom are thrilled about the prospect of the ex-Duke of York becoming their neighbor.
"It reminds one of why Sandringham was bought in the first place and that was to keep Edward VII out of trouble," one resident told the media outlet, referring to the original resident of Sandringham House in 1870 when he was the Prince of Wales. "It’s kind of the history of the monarchy repeating itself. But it’s not nice to be the receptacle of ne’er do wells from the Royal Family."
Another neighbor, Lauren Mitchell, said she was "quite shocked" about Andrew moving to the estate. She noted that she would "hope not to see him," adding that locals' reactions to spotting him out and about in the area would be "probably not good."
Sandringham House is the main property on the 20,000-acre estate.
Prince Andrew is seen at the Duchess of Kent's funeral in September.
People in the area are used to running into the royals at local pubs, in the park, or at the beach. But like Mitchell, nearly all of the residents the Telegraph spoke to said they didn't want to see Andrew out and about in the area.
"I think if he had any real sense of propriety he would maybe just keep himself to himself," one neighbor said, adding, "If he had any level of respect for the public. But then, I don’t think he has any humility."
Jacqueline Hargreaves, 73, told the outlet that she was "not best pleased" to learn that Andrew was moving to the estate. "We don’t want him here. What would we want him here for?" she said. Hargreaves added that "as long as he keeps himself to himself that’s okay, and doesn’t bring any trouble here. Norfolk doesn’t need it. I don’t know why he doesn’t go to America, he quite likes it out there. Go and sit with Trump."
Speaking of Donald Trump, the U.S. president told reporters (via NBC News) that the Andrew situation was "a terrible thing that’s happened to the family." He added, “That’s been a tragic situation, and it’s too bad. I mean, I feel badly for the family."
