'I was only reporter with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and two comments surprised me'

'I was only reporter with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and two comments surprised me' A journalist who travelled with Andrew-Mountbatten Windsor has written about a couple of comments he made whilst abroad in his role as a special envoy for trade and investment A reporter who travelled with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor on a trip abroad has spoken about two comments he made that surprised them. Journalist Catherine Mayer, who wrote about the former Duke of York in her book Divide and Rule, described what the former prince was like in his position as a special envoy for trade and investment for the United Kingdom. Mayer wrote about how it was a position "devised for him" by Buckingham Palace and the UK government. She also talked about what it meant for what Andrew did for work in practicle terms. In the book she discussed how his work showed what little understanding she felt he had about some parts of everyday life Mayer added that there were two comments he made that, in part, demonstrated this. The journalist explained: "I had accompanied Andrew on one of his trade missions, the only journalist ever to do so. Royals are often disconnected from everyday realities, but the gaps in Andrew's understanding of the world yawned startingly wide. "I heard him reassure students at Beijing University that western imports would not dilute Chinese culture. After all, Britons had consumed American culture for years without any appreciable impact." Mayer also discussed how the second comment Andrew made that surprised her was directed not at someone else, but her. She explained: "On another occasion, he demanded to know why I was barefoot. "He had apparently never noticed that his convoys set off as soon as he was seated, leaving anyone travelling at the back of the column to fling themselves at moving vehicles. I had lost a shoe in the process. He told me, for decorum, to wear the remaining one." This isn't the only time Mayer has talked about Andrew in her book, with the former reporter going into more detail about how Andrew's role as trade envoy came with a specific cost. She explained: "Any benefits to the UK came with a hefty price tag: intensive preparations, transport and accommodation for Andrew and his entourage, and four royal protection officers for the duration." Furthermore, Mayer also admitted that Andrew had told her that he wished he could have had one specific profession, she said: "One afternoon in China, he confided to me that he wished he could have been a plumber." Mayer's story in the book come several months after Andrew's life changed dramatically. In November 2025, Andrew lost the right to use the His Royal Highness style and was stripped of his royal titles. Andrew has also been moved from Royal Lodge on the Windsor estate to Marsh Farm on the Sandringham estate in Norfolk. He has been at Marsh Farm since April of this year, a property just a few miles from the small village of Wolferton.