Royal biographer Nigel Cawthorne said Prince Andrew might decide to go on a ‘self-imposed exile’ after giving up his titles and honours as he ‘knows he isn’t wanted here’
18:49, 18 Oct 2025Updated 18:51, 18 Oct 2025
Prince Andrew could move abroad after losing his titles, his biographer says(Image: Getty Images)
Prince Andrew could enter a “self-imposed exile” abroad after losing all his royal titles and honours, his biographer believes.
King Charles’ brother said on Friday night that the accusations against him – which he has always denied, and continues to deny – “distract” from the work of the monarch and the wider Royal Family. The prince stepped down from public life in 2019 after his disastrous Newsnight interview in which he said he “did not regret” his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein, who trafficked Virginia Giuffre.
He went on to stop using his HRH style and was stripped of his military patronages by Queen Elizabeth II. But last night’s announcement goes a step forward and means he will no longer be known as the Duke of York, among other things.
READ MORE: Prince Andrew LIVE: What loss of royal titles means for princesses revealed
Prince Andrew’s biographer believes he may go on a ‘self-imposed exile'(Image: Getty Images)
Royal biographer Nigel Cawthorne, who wrote Prince Andrew: Epstein, Maxwell and the Palace and War of the Windsors, thinks the only option Andrew now has is to go on a “self-imposed exile” because he “knows he isn’t wanted here.” The author told the Express: “Even his own family no longer wants to be seen with him. I think the only choice he has left is self-imposed exile.
“His one option left is to find a friendly country where he can live out the rest of his days in comparative peace and safety. He’s finally reached the very end of the road here at home.” The biographer spoke out after Andrew shared a statement via Buckingham Palace, saying: “In discussion with the King, and my immediate and wider family, we have concluded the continued accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty and the Royal Family.”
He added, after referencing his decision to step down from public life more than five years ago: “With His Majesty’s agreement, we feel I must now go a step further. I will therefore no longer use my title or the honours which have been conferred upon me.” And he insisted: “I have decided, as I always have, to put my duty to my family and country first.” However, he insisted he denies all the accusations against him.
King Charles with his brother Andrew(Image: Getty Images)
While he will no longer use the Duke of York title, Andrew will remain a prince, which he has been entitled to since birth. He is still eighth in line of succession, and the change will not affect his daughters, who will remain Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie.
His ex-wife Sarah Ferguson, who split from the duke more than 30 years ago but remained one of his greatest supporters and still shares his Royal Lodge home, will, however, revert to her maiden name of Ferguson, losing her courtesy royal divorcee title Sarah, Duchess of York. It was also confirmed that Andrew will no longer join the King and the rest of the royal family at Christmas at Sandringham, which prevents him from strolling to church on Christmas Day in full public view, greeting wellwishers.
And he will no longer act as a Royal Knight Companion of the Order of the Garter, meaning he will not be able to take part in the annual Garter service inside Windsor Castle each June, having previously been banned from the outdoor procession. He will also not be able to wear the Garter robes he was seen in at Charles’s coronation.
Andrew with his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson(Image: WireImage)
The move further shunts Andrew into the royal wilderness – and removes opportunity for him to be seen publicly alongside Charles, William and the rest of royals. Mr Cawthorne continued: “He’s now reached the point of no return, but I believe Fergie will stick with him, as she has all these years despite their divorce. But I think there would be public uproar if they were to even try to remain in their current home Royal Lodge in Windsor Great Park.”
One possibility of at least a temporary refuge, he added, is the luxury Portuguese villa owned by their youngest daughter Princess Eugenie and her businessman husband Jack Brooksbank. Mr Cawthorne added he believes there will now be renewed demands for Scotland Yard to instigate a “belated investigation” into Andrew’s ties to billionaire paedophile Epstein, who was found hanged in a New York prison cell while awaiting trial in August 2019.
The prince is now facing a fresh probe in America, where his legal team paid a reported £12million settlement to Ms Giuffre – who took her own life in April at her home in Australia – after she sued him in a civil case in February 2022. When the US government – currently on shutdown – reopens, Congress will vote on bipartisan bill number H.R. 4405 that, if passed, would compel the Department of Justice to release its entire files on the FBI investigation into Epstein.