Prince Charles To Live In 'Flat Above The Shop' As Buckingham Palace Will Be Open To The Public, Insider Claims
Prince Charles isn't King just yet, but he's already shaking things up! According to the Mail on Sunday, the prince is shuffling everyone's residencies around.
"The central point is: when the Queen is no longer here, how do you effectively spread two generations of the family across quite a large number of properties?" the source told the outlet. "The Prince of Wales strongly believes that these places have got to deliver something for the public beyond just being somewhere for members of the Royal Family to live. Everything is seen through the lens of the question: 'What value is this offering to the public?' Everybody recognizes it makes no sense to run so many residences but if you give them up entirely you will never get them back when Prince George and the younger royals grow up and need somewhere to live."
Buckingham Palace — which includes 52 royal and guest bedrooms and 188 staff bedrooms — will also open to the public all year-round, which means that Charles will be changing his living situation.
"Despite what everybody thinks about him not wanting to live there, he will certainly have accommodation there – but it will be a much more modest flat-above-the-shop situation akin to that of the Prime Minister at Downing Street," an insider said. "Both the Prince and the Duchess of Cornwall are very practical and see that the reigning Monarch must live at Buckingham Palace, otherwise it would become like Hampton Court."
Although Charles gave Meghan Markle and Prince Harry Clarence House, the plans changed after the two moved to California.
"No one is terribly fond of Clarence House because it's still seen very much as the Queen Mother's place," the insider pointed out.
This isn't the only change Charles wants to make, as he has been planning on trimming the fat for quite some time.
"Prince Charles has wanted for a very long time to cut the monarchy down to save costs and to make people be worth the money that they got from the taxpayer," royal expert Angela Levin shared on talkRADIO. "I imagine that might be when Harry and Meghan are ditched from being members of the royal family."
"I think the outer edge, which the Queen has wanted to keep together for a very long time for sentimental reasons ... which at her age she didn't really particularly want change, which I think is understandable," explained Levin. "But he wants change and I think he will do that."
