FROGMARCHED IN
Inside 10-bed Frogmore Cottage where Charles is ‘desperate’ for Andrew to move to – with Meghan Markle’s £2.4m refurb
One expert described the home as a 'privacy fortress' with the Sussexes having rules for neighbours
FROGMORE Cottage used to be the lush Windsor home for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle before they relocated to California.
But now it could be the new pad of the disgraced Prince Andrew, if King Charles evicts him from his current home, Royal Lodge.
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The shamed duke will never return to public duty after the Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking scandal, and Charles has been trying to evict him from the 30-room property for 18 months as it falls into disrepair.
While the Duke of York is reluctant to budge, moving into Frogmore Cottage would hardly be a hardship.
The white-washed mansion dates back to 1801 and underwent a massive renovation said to have cost £2.4million when the Sussexes took charge, before they handed back the keys on June 28, 2023.
We take a look inside at Prince Andrew’s potential new digs…
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‘SUBSTANTIAL OVERHAUL’
The Grade II listed cottage sits on the grounds of Frogmore House, which is just minutes away from the late Queen Elizabeth's residence at Windsor Castle.
The couple moved into the property - a wedding present from the late Queen - in April 2019 after it had been extensively renovated to the tune of £2.4million out of the taxpayer’s pocket.
The renovations required for Frogmore Cottage were reported to have included new heating, wiring and utilities meaning the property had a "substantial overhaul".
Harry and Meghan agreed to pay back the money for the refurbishment when they moved to the United States and gave up their royal titles.
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The cottage had been a series of apartments housing workers from the Windsor estate, but it was converted into one large home to make room for the couple and their son, Archie.
While it used to have 10 bedrooms, it now reportedly has five after the renovation work.
Harry and Meghan finally hand back keys to Frogmore Cottage six months after being served eviction notice
MEG'S SWANKY KITCHEN
The Times’ Royal Editor Kate Mansey shared on her : “Frogmore Cottage is a very, very nice place.
“Harry and Meghan did it up beautifully. We saw inside it with the Netflix drama.
“There are pendant lights and a beautiful kitchen that was put in by Meghan, all very tasteful.
“I'm not sure you think that's Andrew and Fergie's taste, but it'll be nicely done up, won't it?”
The kitchen was revealed to have a marble-topped island at the centre, a herringbone wooden floor and several "cosy" brick feature walls.
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PRICEY UPKEEP
Prince Andrew’s Royal Lodge is said to be crumbling and in need of expensive upkeep, but Frogmore Cottage will also require regular maintenance.
Real estate expert and founder of Eric Bramlett claims maintaining and upkeeping royal residences is a costly and tricky business.
Eric added: “Upwards of £2-5million annually is a reasonable estimate for basic operating costs - utilities, staff salaries, supplies, repairs, insurance, security and so on.
“This team handles a wide range of comprehensive responsibilities - cleaning, maintenance, restoration work, landscaping, event planning, visitor services, security, and more.
"It's an around-the-clock job.”
ANDREW'S DOWNSIZE
In March an insider said the Duke has been "resisting" shifting to the cottage.
The source said that's because the 63-year-old doesn't want to downsize from the £30million Royal Lodge in Windsor, which he has called home for more than 20 years.
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Despite his divorce from Sarah Ferguson in 1996, Prince Andrew lives with his ex-wife at the countryside estate, and it hasn't been confirmed if she will move with him.
While Andrew has signed a 75-year lease on the property he still fears he could be kicked out.
MEGXIT TERMS
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry announced on January 8, 2020, they would be stepping down as 'senior' members of the Royal Family.
On January 18 it was announced that the Sussexes would “no longer be working members of Britain’s Royal Family”, and would not use their “Royal Highness” titles.
A Palace spokeswoman said the couple would no longer receive public money and that they would repay the £2.4million cost of refurbishing their cottage — Frogmore — in Windsor, Berks.
The following day, Harry said in a heartfelt speech: “Our hope was to continue serving the Queen, the Commonwealth, and my military associations without public funding. Unfortunately, that wasn’t possible.”
The Duke of Sussex said he had found the “love and happiness I had hoped for all my life” with Meghan.
NOT 'SUPER POSH'
Despite it being beautifully finished, Frogmore Cottage does not come close to Meghan and Harry’s current £11million Montecito home, which has nine bedrooms, a spa, tennis court, outdoor pool, and a private playground for Archie and Lilibet.
The Sussexes’ Netflix documentary series Harry & Meghan gave fans a glimpse inside their former Windsor home and experts have called it “homely”.
Despite its modern update, interiors expert Benji Lewis told the the room had more of "a homely, downtime ‘undone’ feel to it than anything super posh".
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He noted there was a spacious breakfast bar area with dark wooden cupboards to contrast with marble countertops, a lush silver sink and trendy industrial lighting.
Benji also says the couple maintained the property's original white panelled doors - complete with a metal hanging lock.
He believed casual wooden stools made the space "ready for welcoming people with ease" but also noticed a "hidden" practical feature.
"There's seemingly a spot that's been allowed for, a kind of desk with a chair, where someone can sit and work with power close to hand - useful for the phone charger or plugging in a laptop," Benji said.
According to reports, designer Vicky Charles, who is the mastermind behind Soho House, was chosen by the couple to take charge of upgrading the interior.
PRIVACY 'FORTRESS'
Katie Nicholl, who has written biographies on the Royals, told ITV's Lorraine that the Grade II listed building was "pretty much a fortress" to ensure the couple's privacy.
She told presenter Christine Lampard at the time: "We know that they're living this wonderful tucked away life at Frogmore Cottage which is pretty much, from what I hear, a fortress. Privacy's the key factor."
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While Andrew may be more relaxed if he moves in, the Sussexes had a strict list of requirements for locals in the area.
At a residents' meeting, neighbours of the royals were given a list of "do and don't commandments" which included:
- Don't approach or instigate conversation if you see the couple
- Do say 'Good Morning' or some other pleasantry if they speak to you
- Don't pet or stroke their dogs, even if they come over to you
- Don't offer to walk their dogs
- Don't ask to see baby Archie or offer to babysit
- Don't post anything through the letterbox of Frogmore Cottage
This included royal staff, officials who live in grace-and-favour houses, and Crown Estate employees.
OTHER ROYAL INHABITANTS
The Sussexes aren’t the only members of the Royal Family to have called Frogmore Cottage home.
Princess Eugenie lived there with husband Jack Brooksbank after Meghan and Harry vacated it, but the couple have since moved to Portugal.
Prior to the doc, glimpses of Frogmore Cottage came from Princess Eugenie and her husband Jack, who the Duke allowed to live there because it was bigger than their former cottage at Kensington Palace.
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Neutral colours appear to be the theme, as seen in a picture of the princess with her best friend, Julia Boinville, where they are seated on a cream sofa in front of a huge blue bookshelf.
The sofa is adorned with cushions featuring red trimmed designs and another one with a blue and white pattern.
Another green cushion appears to be a lovely tribute to Eugenie's son August, who arrived in 2021, and featured the writing: "August born in February".
Books such as Blood and Earth by Kevin Bales, which talks about modern-day slavery, and Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code feature prominently on the bookshelf.
'There is no way back for Prince Andrew', claims PR guru
PRINCE Andrew’s reputation is damaged beyond repair and he will never be able to engineer a return to public life, according to one of Britain’s top PR gurus.
Brand and culture expert Nick Ede, who runs East of Eden PR agency, called the shamed royal “deluded” for thinking he could ever return to royal duties and urged him to give up and ‘enjoy his life’ in exile.
It follows the release of Scoop - a Netflix movie based on the 2019 interview he gave to Newsnight.
Nick said: “There is no way back for him.
“I think you know this perpetual idea that he could still be back. Nobody cares. He hasn't got fans.
“There's nobody out there who's going ‘We want to see Prince Andrew’, not one single person. I think he has to realise that. But I think it's going to take a long, long time for him to actually understand. It's very deluded.
"In my opinion, the best thing that he could do is just enjoy his life. He's got gorgeous daughters. He has a great relationship with Fergie, he has a lovely house.
“Just live a quiet life.”
Reflecting on the interview five years ago - the fallout of which saw Andrew step back from royal duties "for the foreseeable future" - Nick compared the fallout to Frost vs Nixon and said he would have urged him not to do it.
He said: “If I had been advising him, I would say, go quiet, be quiet, just go to ground. You know you're a prince. Enjoy the life that you lead, but do not open this can of worms, because that's what it is.
“There was no admission that a relationship with somebody like Epstein was terribly toxic. There was no idea that there were loads of victims of trafficking whose lives were completely ruined by Epstein. He didn't seem to think that the association he had with that man was anything but positive.
“I think his worst gaffe was obviously being in that interview and agreeing to it in the first place, for not realising that he's actually going to be interviewed by a very, very good journalist who is going to ask him questions which he might not like.
“But I think what this has done is really shown how archaic Prince Andrew is in his opinions and thoughts.
"Read the room. He's never read a room at all.”
In another snap, we saw a sweet picture of Jack sitting on an off-white linen sofa, cuddling August.
On Father's Day last year, Eugenie posted a picture of her husband with their son, lying on a black and red rug in what seems to be a playroom.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
When Harry and Meghan visited for the Queen's Platinum Jubilee, their friend Camilla Holmstroem shared an adorable picture of the pair with their children taken during Lilibet's first birthday party.
In the background a painting, possibly by Matisse, hangs on the wall while an ornate rug is spread out on the floor.
Inside Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's Californian home
PRINCE Harry and Meghan Markle have lived in their luxury Montecito mansion since they splashed out £11.93m on it in June 2020.
The sprawling nine-bed, 16-bath home in Santa Barbara sits on 5.4 acres of land and features a library, office, spa, gym, game room, wine cellar and five-car garage, it's believed.
The estate also boasts sweeping lawns, tiered rose gardens, tall Italian cypress trees, blooming lavender, olive trees, a tennis court, tea house, children's cottage and a pool.
The couple have treated fans to glimpses of their multiple living spaces on several occasions - showing off a minimalist vibe.
It is said to have more than doubled in value since the former royals bought it.
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