Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor 'got Navy man sacked' in furious row over croutons

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor allegedly got a Royal Navy officer sacked in a row over croutons, a royal biographer claims. The disgraced former prince served in the navy for 22 years and served as a pilot during the Falklands War in 1982.

Royal biographer Andrew Lownie claimed in Friday's edition of the podcast that King Charles's brother had a run-in with a colleague during his naval career. The author of Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York said: "There's a story of a naval officer who reprimanded Andrew, who complained about croutons on his salad and said: 'What are all these?' And the naval officer said, 'You shouldn't have a wobbly about some croutons'. And Andrew went and complained about him, and the guy got sacked."

Mr Mountbatten-Windsor's office has been approached for comment.

The author made a series of bombshell claims in today's podcast, including around the former prince's treatment of policemen and an allegation of being "handsy" with a young RAF officer.

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Mr Lownie's Daily Expresso appearance came as it emerged Mr Mountbatten-Windsor received an undisclosed private income from sub-letting three cottages on the Royal Lodge estate while he was paying a peppercorn rent for more than two decades.

The National Audit Office published a report on Thursday (June 4) into the Royal Family's residential property arrangements after controversy surrounding the disgraced former duke's lease of the Crown Estate home.

Other findings by the public spending watchdog include the revelation that King Charles foots the bill for Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie's accommodation in royal palaces despite both Andrew's daughters being non-working royals.

For a number of years, their adjusted rents - reduced because the Royal Household properties require tenants with security clearance - were based on outdated open-market valuations.

Former Liberal Democrat minister Norman Baker, who has long been a critic of royal finances, branded the arrangements "outrageous".

He said: "The whole thing is outrageous. If you look at Andrew, this is adding insult to injury.

"It shows an absolute total contempt for the taxpayer, not only that Andrew was able to have a peppercorn rent for a gigantic property, but then to make potentially millions on the side from subletting properties.

"The money should have gone to the Crown Estate, not into (his) pockets."

Sources have suggested Andrew's sub-letting did not generate a profit and the rent was set at a rate to only cover maintenance and running costs for staff living there.

But no figures, such as repair and household costs versus rental income, or copies of the rental agreements, have been made public.

Mr Mountbatten-Windsor was photographed on Thursday with what appeared to be a large facial bruise, though it is understood not to be a cause for concern.