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Prince William had a few choice words about his disgraced uncle before his father, King Charles III, took action.
The claim comes from Russell Myers, royal editor of the Daily Mirror and author of the new book “William and Catherine,” which examines how the Prince and Princess of Wales have weathered the storms that have rocked the House of Windsor.
Myers told Fox News Digital that palace aides had sounded the alarm about former Prince Andrew’s behavior before his relationship with late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein came to light.
“It was very clear to me, made by several people I’d spoken to for the book, how William thought his uncle was always a bit of an ignoramus,” said Myers.
“He had a real issue with the way that Andrew treated his staff,” he shared. “He didn’t like his attitude of entitlement and privilege. This is very alien to both William and Catherine.
“They are very centered on producing really sound and enjoyable working environments for the people who are employed by them. They’re very respectful of the people that they work with. You just have to look at the amount of time that people stayed and worked within their household.”
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Myers noted that tensions between William and Charles intensified after Andrew gave a bombshell interview to the BBC in 2019, where he attempted to explain his friendship with Epstein.
“After that disastrous 2019 interview Andrew gave to the BBC’s ‘Newsnight,’ in which he failed to apologize for his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, … William had the foresight to say, ‘This man must not have any place within the institution, any place within the family. He must be banished because he got himself into this mess, and he must be banished before the rot sets in.’”
“That’s what he told the late queen and his father at the time,” Myers claimed. “… [Andrew] failed to apologize for his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. He failed to acknowledge the real impact on Jeffrey Epstein’s victims and really gave a very bad account of himself. … I think it was six years later before King Charles finally took that action of stripping his title, stripping his honors and exiling him from public life.”
Charles ascended to the throne following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, in 2022. Myers noted the monarch faced mounting pressure from the public and William to address “the Andrew problem” swiftly.
“You’re also seeing investigators building cases from a catalog of allegations that have followed Andrew,” said Myers.
“And even though he’s denied all the allegations that have been put in front of him, we only have to look at what is happening now. Multiple police forces are investigating a catalog of claims and allegations relating to his misconduct.”
“I think if William had had his way, then certainly the royal family would’ve been able to be on the front foot many years ago,” Myers added.
Fox News Digital reached out to Kensington Palace for comment. A spokesperson for Buckingham Palace previously told Fox News Digital, “We don’t comment on such books.”
Royal commentator Meredith Constant told Fox News Digital that before Andrew’s scandals, Charles and his heir didn’t always see eye-to-eye on how the monarchy should be managed.
“When the queen died, there were people in the palace afraid of how the public would receive Charles,” Constant explained. “There have been calls since William was a child for Charles to step out of the way in favor of King William’s reign sooner. The idea, after the queen’s death, that Charles and William were in ‘lockstep’ was largely invented.”
“Charles wants to bring the monarchy into the 21st century, while still respecting the pomp that comes with the job,” said Constant.
“Despite battling cancer, King Charles led the pack in the number of royal engagements for 2025, with 533, versus William with 202. Prince William envisions a monarchy where he takes on fewer causes but does more behind the scenes for maximum impact.
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“Like a politician running for office, William has the advantage of saying, primarily through sources, what his reign will look like and what he would do differently. The difference is, he’s not running for office. He was predestined for the role.”
Royal experts told Fox News Digital that tensions between father and son reportedly led to disagreements over how to address Andrew and the fallout from his scandals.
“William and Charles differ on the handling of Andrew,” said Constant. “Charles has always felt some responsibility for his brother, especially after his mother died. William is a lot less forgiving of his uncle and thought Andrew should be cut out much earlier, ‘before the rot sets in.’
“Right now, the Andrew situation is with the police and the U.K. government, so father and son will want to stay out of the way while presenting a united front. It doesn’t help either one of their interests to appear fractured at the moment.”
“The reality is, we don’t know what William would have done if he were already king,” she noted. “Perhaps he would have diverged from his father, but we’ve also seen areas where William has followed suit despite promising a different strategy, like his relationship with the British media.”
“The image presented of William as a global statesman, charting a new path, modernizing the monarchy, is a bit at odds with some of what we’ve seen,” she pointed out. “That doesn’t mean he can’t be that changemaker king.”
According to Myers’ book, William challenged his father directly about Andrew following the queen’s death. However, the Prince of Wales was “very much put in his place,” said a source. While William didn’t agree that Andrew’s exile should be limited, he didn’t provoke his father any further.
Myers also noted that, for years, William questioned Andrew’s worth in the royal household, asking, “What does he actually do?” Myers claimed that while William has a close relationship with his cousins, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie, William was horrified by how Andrew behaved in front of staff, “ordering people out, the aggressive or dismissive manner.”
Whenever Andrew faced new allegations involving Epstein, William would “implore the king to act,” urging for his uncle’s title to be stripped and to finally banish him for good.
“The Prince of Wales was adamant the whole episode would never go away and, despite how others may have felt, that there was absolutely no upside in Andrew being protected,” a palace source close to William told Myers.
“His view was crystal clear: Andrew shouldn’t be anywhere near the family under any circumstances, not by association, not at family functions, anywhere. Every single time there was a new revelation, which no one knew when it was coming or what the next one would be, it was a stain on all of the family.”
Myers wrote that when Charles attempted to coax his brother out of his 30-room mansion, where he lived with his ex-wife, Andrew was “in no mood to move” and told the king he was “going nowhere.”
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On Oct. 30, the king stripped his younger brother of the right to be called prince, forced him to move out of the royal estate he occupied for more than 20 years and issued a public statement supporting the women and girls abused by Epstein.
Then, on Feb. 19 — Andrew’s birthday — the 66-year-old was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office during an inquiry linked to his ties with Epstein. He is accused of sharing confidential trade information with the late American financier.
The late queen’s favorite son is the first senior British royal to be arrested since King Charles I nearly 400 years ago. After being held for about 11 hours, Thames Valley Police confirmed to Fox News Digital that Andrew was released. The investigation is ongoing.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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