Paul Burrell claims he witnessed Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s “entitled” and “pompous” behavior firsthand amid reports that a growing list of palace staffers have refused to serve the disgraced ex-royal.
Princess Diana’s former butler and Queen Elizabeth II’s one-time footman has released a new memoir, “The Royal Insider,” in which he details his decadeslong career as a servant in the British royal household and his encounters behind palace doors.
The 67-year-old told Fox News Digital he had a front-row seat to “Randy Andy’s” bad behavior as the late queen’s notoriously indulgent favorite son.
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“I had lots of interactions with Andrew over the years,” Burrell said. “I saw his pompousness firsthand. He would tell people to ‘F off, get out of here, F off,’ which was obscene, really — the way he treated people.”
“I remember the staff revolting because they were kept up late at night,” Burrell said. “Andrew and Sarah would hold dinner parties in their rooms at Buckingham Palace. They’d use the queen’s staff and chefs, with extravagant menus that treated guests to three- or four-course meals — complete with puddings and starters — as if it were an à la carte restaurant.”
“The queen got wind of it,” Burrell recalled. “She heard about it. The staff would be up until midnight cooking, serving and waiting on them. And she said, ‘This must stop. These are my staff. They’re not yours, Andrew, and you must treat them with respect. They’re here to look after us. It’s their duty to look after us, and we must appreciate that.’”
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“Andrew did get a ticking off from his mother,” Burrell continued. “But then they wouldn’t let the maids into the rooms to make the beds. They would stay in bed at all hours. They would abuse the system.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Buckingham Palace for comment. A palace spokesperson previously told Fox News Digital, “We don’t comment on such books.” It’s understood the palace does not speak for the former prince, as he is no longer a working royal.
Burrell’s remarks follow a report in The Sun that a lengthy list of staffers has opted out of serving Andrew, 65, at his new home.
“They’ve been told they don’t have to serve Andrew or work for him if they feel uncomfortable,” the source told the outlet. “There’s already quite a list saying ‘no, thanks.’ There’s understandably a lot of disquiet, as he is now viewed as a total pariah.”
British royals expert Hilary Fordwich told Fox News Digital that many staff members have said they find Andrew “creepy” or “disgusting.”
“This is literally a mutiny by staff who are extremely uncomfortable not only serving Andrew — given his scandalous behavior — but also because of the ghastly manner in which he treats staff and anyone he deems beneath him, which ostensibly amounts to everyone,” Fordwich said.
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“It is totally unprecedented for any royal — especially among senior royals — to experience such resistance, which really amounts to a strike,” Fordwich said. “There is also public outrage over this, despite King Charles saying he is paying for it out of his private funds, which the public still views as their tax pounds.”
Andrew has moved out of his 30-room mansion, Royal Lodge, ahead of the reported Easter deadline to vacate. He is temporarily staying at Wood Farm on King Charles’ Sandringham estate before relocating to his new home, Marsh Farm.
According to Burrell’s book, Andrew was so “besotted” with his then-wife that the kitchen staff had “run off their feet” serving the couple. They held lavish dinners, lunches and tea parties for their friends and, at times, refused to leave “their marital bed” for days.
The staff reportedly “rebelled and protested” until the Master of the Household informed the queen of the unrest. Burrell also wrote that Andrew was “inconsiderate and rude” at best.
“He was so demanding that he kept a photograph of his collection of soft toys in a drawer in his bedroom to which the maids had to refer to ensure that they were in their correct place after they had made the bed,” he wrote.
Burrell told Fox News Digital that the former Duke of York was “always greedy” and “wanted more,” believing he was “indestructible.”
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“He was always entitled — always — because he had his mother’s protection,” Burrell said. “Maybe our dear late queen was to blame for that because she never said no to her favorite son, Andrew. I think the reason for that is that by the time Andrew came along, she finally had time to be a mother. She was never a mother to Charles and Princess Anne — she was queen first. But she doted on Andrew.”
“Andrew could have anything he wanted because he spent a lot of time with his mother, and they got very close,” said Burrell. “And so, the queen was always the first person that Andrew went to.”
Burrell said Andrew’s father, Prince Philip, was the “guardian of the gate,” ensuring other senior royals didn’t bother the queen with personal problems. But after Philip died in 2021, “Andrew was the first there and by his mother’s side.”
“The queen must have been aware of Andrew’s character,” Burrell said. “She must have been — but she still protected him.”
In his book, Burrell wrote that Andrew made “life hell for the people around him.” Unlike his mother, he “never” respected palace staff who looked after the family because he always believed it was his right. And whenever Andrew needed financial help, he turned to his mother, who “was always there for her son — to save him from himself and from his mistakes.”
Burrell wondered whether Ferguson fell under the prince’s influence, noting that he openly relished a life of luxury.
“I always said Sarah Ferguson was a farmer’s daughter — the daughter of the polo manager,” he told Fox News Digital. “Andrew told her she could have anything she wanted — and she did. She had everything. Everything she wanted, she had. So she became spoiled, and she became entitled, too. The two of them were well-matched.”
In 2019, Andrew stepped back as a senior royal following a disastrous BBC interview in which he tried to address his ties to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. King Charles stripped Andrew of his remaining royal titles and honors in late 2025 amid renewed scrutiny over his Epstein connection.
Ferguson, 66, who lost her Duchess of York title, has since left Royal Lodge. She had continued living on the property with her ex-husband despite their 1996 divorce.
On Jan. 30, the Department of Justice released more than 3 million pages of records related to Epstein, including personal emails. The former Duke and Duchess of York appeared in the newly released email exchanges and photos. Three images reportedly showed Andrew on all fours above an unidentified woman on the ground.
Inclusion in the files does not necessarily imply wrongdoing. Fox News Digital previously reached out to Ferguson’s spokesperson for comment about the Epstein-related correspondence. A charity founded by Ferguson has since shut down, and she has been dropped as a patron of several charitable organizations.
“When the queen died, Charles inherited that problem,” Burrell told Fox News Digital. “I think the king knows more than we do — he knows exactly what’s coming because he’s controlling it now. Charles can be Andrew’s keeper — the controller of all his actions.”
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“I think we should all remember that Andrew isn’t guilty of any crime,” Burrell stressed. “Accusations, yes. But we have also forgotten about the victims in this Epstein scandal, and they should be taken care of first. Andrew’s life and career are finished, as are Sarah Ferguson’s. … I truly believe we all have to pay for our sins — and Andrew and Sarah must pay for theirs.”
