A royal expert revealed how a family was suddenly forced to leave their home because of Prince William and Kate Middleton. The situation arose when the late Queen Elizabeth decided to give the couple a “belated wedding gift.” The tenants who already stayed in the house weren’t too excited about the sudden eviction notice they received.
Richard Eden, who is a famous royal correspondent, shared how the Queen’s generosity towards William and Kate caused extreme inconvenience to a family. In a recent episode of the Daily Mail Royal podcast, Eden shared how he was entrusted with the responsibility of breaking the news to the tenants.
“We got wind that Queen Elizabeth was going to be giving a new house to William and Catherine as, I think, a belated wedding gift,” he said on the podcast. The house in question was Anmer Hall, located on the Sandringham Estate.
The house had been rented out to James Everett, owner of Norfolk Oak, and his family at the time. The Everett family that resided in the mansion in the early 2000s had a valid lease to the house until 2017.
The mansion comprises 10 bedrooms and was leased to the businessman on one condition. The condition that the lease included was that the tenant must give up the house if a royal planned on accommodating in it.
Eden recalls how he had to break the news to the tenants in person. “I remember ringing up the man whose family they were living at this house and said, ‘Actually, we’ve heard that your house is about to be given to William and Catherine,’ the royal correspondent shared.
He also reveals how Everett wasn’t too keen when he received the news. Eden recalls how the man wasn’t “too happy” about the sudden termination of the lease. He shares how the Everett family had “loved” living in the mansion.
“They moved to another property, and I think, in the end, they were they were perfectly happy,” he shared. The couple moved into the mansion in 2015. Renovations were made to the house that cost an estimated £1.5 million. The money for the renovations came out of the royal family’s funds.
A new roof and kitchen were installed in the home as part of the renovations. Changes to the internal decorations were made to better suit the couple’s taste. An extensive tree-planting programme was also carried out, according to a report by The Mirror.
