Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor earned a harsh nickname from colleagues during his tenure as a trade envoy. The former prince served as a trade envoy for the British Government from 2001 to 2011.

Foreign Office officials claim he stayed in five-star hotels at taxpayers’ expense and made numerous demands whilst travelling. These included insisting his water be served at room temperature without ice and having prunes specially delivered. Labour MPs called last week for documents concerning Andrew’s trade missions to be released publicly.

This followed the former Duke of York’s arrest on suspicion of misconduct in public office, though he was subsequently released under investigation.

Andrew’s role as an envoy has come under renewed scrutiny after the US Department of Justice published a batch of documents from the Epstein files. This heightened focus on Andrew’s association with the convicted sex offender, who died in prison in 2019.

A former official told the BBC that Andrew was “a pain to look after” with staff joking he would “carve out time for relaxation and golf”. They continued: “everything was first class” and that he’s “not going to stay at the Premier Inn and drink a Heineken. He’s going to drink fancy wines”, reports the Mirror.

They added: “He was seen as a liability. The general view was that he was very demanding.”

According to Simon Wilson, a deputy ambassador to Bahrain from 2001 to 2005, who helped arrange three visits for Andrew, the King’s younger brother earned a rather cutting nickname amongst colleagues.

He told the I paper: “He was rude and arrogant. The term ‘His Buffoon Highness’ was used among diplomats.”

Mr Wilson revealed that Andrew would travel with a substantial entourage of staff including a private secretary, an equerry, a valet and a clerk. He added: “There was a whole raft of demands, like water at room temperature, no ice.”

He continued by explaining that Andrew would bring along a “6ft ironing board” which became something of an in-joke amongst colleagues. He remembered the “farcical” incident when it once became stuck in a revolving door at a hotel.

Another ex-Foreign Office official stated Andrew maintained a list of foods he would and wouldn’t consume. As well as having prunes flown in for his breakfast, he would decline to eat garlic.

Alastair Morgan, who began working as a foreign diplomat in 2001, held positions in Japan and China during Andrew’s visits as an envoy. He described the former prince as being “difficult to direct and petulant at times”.

He recounted one instance when Andrew received business cards in a Japanese hotel only to “throw them aside” and question what he should do with them. He suggests that whilst Andrew could be “polite” he was typically perceived as “quite grumpy”.

Representatives for the Foreign Office and Andrew have been contacted for comment.