ROBERT HARDMAN: Andrew hit Vice Admiral in row over charity event

During his time as Trade Envoy, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor allegedly struck the Master of the Royal Household after being refused the use of a room in Buckingham Palace to host a charity event, royal biographer Robert Hardman claims in a new Daily Mail podcast.

Speaking on a special episode of Queens, Kings and Dastardly Things, Hardman described the incident between the former prince and Vice Admiral Sir Tony Johnstone-Burt as 'appalling' - so serious t hat Prince Philip felt compelled to pen an apology letter on his son's behalf.

The story is just one of many new revelations about Andrew from Hardman's new book, Elizabeth II: In Private. In Public. The Inside Story., published to mark the centenary of Queen Elizabeth II's birth.

The Daily Mail columnist rejected claims the late Queen shielded Andrew from the consequences of his bad behaviour, but admitted she saw him as her most 'vulnerable' child and therefore treated him differently to his siblings.

'He was not as bright as the others, he could be boorish and everyone knew that,' Hardman said of Andrew.

'David Cameron said to me when I was writing the book, all the other members of the family knew the boundaries, they knew what they were supposed to do and what they shouldn't.

'I saw with my own eyes at places like the World Economic Forum in Davos how Andrew would come in and upset people, say the wrong thing, cross a line.

Read More

How did the unsolved murder of a sickly housewife doom one of England's greatest Royal dynasties?

'There was this appalling moment where he actually punched the Master of the Royal Household. It's an extraordinary story that I go into in some detail in the book.

'There's a very distinguished Admiral, Sir Tony Johnstone-Burt, Master of the Royal Household. Andrew wants to have an event for his Pitch at the Palace charity.

'Andrew says, I want this room and Sir Johnstone-Burt says actually, they are all fully booked but I will see what I can do.

'He then goes, 'no I want this', not taking no for an answer. This ends with Andrew actually hitting the Master of the Royal Household. It would be court martial stuff in the Royal Navy.'

Hardman claimed that news of the embarrassing altercation was 'raised up the chain of command', getting the attention of the Lord Chamberlain, Prince Philip and ultimately, the late Queen.

Sir Tony Johnstone-Burt remains a 'very popular figure' in Palace circles, Hardman noted, and continues to serve as Master of the Household under King Charles to this day.

'When the Queen hears about it, she's not remotely surprised', Hardman alleged.

'Prince Philip writes a letter of apology to the Master. Prince Andrew, I am told, wrote a very mealy mouthed, not quite apology.

'I think we can understand where the Queen's sympathy lay because not long afterwards, the Master got a knighthood.'

Hardman predicted that more embarrassing details about Andrew's conduct as Trade Envoy are likely to emerge in time.

The Queen's treatment of her son, the biographer argued, is one of the only things the monarch 'got wrong' during her historic 70-year reign.

'There are many other stories in my book', he said.

'Moments where people are turning up for an investiture at Buckingham Palace, and it's their big day. They're all very excited.

'They walk across the Quadrangle and suddenly, a car comes screeching to a halt, doing a handbrake turn, gravel flying up. It's Prince Andrew just showing off.

'There are ample stories of him just throwing his weight around… we will start to discover more about other government departments, other Palace departments, who maybe should have acted sooner.

'As we approach the 100th birthday of Elizabeth II, that's obviously there on the relatively short list of things she got wrong. I think she got a lot more right.'

Listen to the first in a series of special Queens, Kings and Dastardly Things episodes on Elizabeth II wherever you get your podcasts, or on YouTube.