Prince Andrew 'may never be seen with Royal Family again' after 'spy' scandal

An insider has reportedly expressed fears that the Duke of York may never be seen in public with the Royal Family again. This comes as Prince Andrew, 64, is set to miss this year's traditional Christmas gathering at Sandringham amidst ongoing controversy surrounding his links to alleged Chinese spy, Yang Tengbo, who was revealed on Monday to be a 50 year old man.

The Duke will not be attending what was anticipated to be one of the largest festive events at his brother, the King's private Norfolk estate. An insider shared their doubts about Andrew's future public appearances with prominent members of The Firm, stating: "I find it hard to imagine he will ever join them again in public, if I'm honest. There's only so many times the duke can be asked to keep his head down and wait for the storm to pass. Enough is enough."

This harsh criticism follows Andrew being stripped of any public role or patronage due to his connections with disgraced paedophile Jeffrey Epstein and strongly denied accusations of sexual assault. In January 2022, Buckingham Palace announced: "With the Queen's approval and agreement, the Duke of York's military affiliations and royal patronages have been returned to the Queen."

The Duke has once again made headlines with his "close" associations to Mr Tengbo coming to light. A source disclosed to the Daily Mail that the British public should only anticipate seeing Prince Andrew at Royal gatherings reserved for occasions like weddings and funerals, reports the Mirror.

He was scheduled to participate in the traditional Christmas Day church walk at Sandringham, which is typically plastered across media outlets with images and footage of the Royals, but has now decided against attending. His ex-wife, Sarah, Duchess of York will also not be present for the Christmas festivities at Sandringham, in what appears to be an act of support for her erstwhile spouse.

The duo is expected to celebrate the day together at Royal Lodge, their shared residence in Windsor Great Park, Berkshire. Whether the Duke plans to attend King Charles's conventional pre-Christmas lunch for the wider family at Buckingham Palace on Thursday remains uncertain.

Following reports on Monday, December 16, that Andrew had been encouraged to "uninvite himself" from the lunch to avoid further shame for the Royal Family amidst the Chinese "spy" controversy, this is left undisclosed. Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie have also organised to spend their first Christmas with their children and respective in-laws' families, according to insiders.

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