His Majesty understood...

Public heckling was last straw for King over Andrew

- BY RUSSELL MYERS Royal Editor and JENNIFER NEWTON

AS revulsion over the string of tawdry allegations against Prince Andrew reached fever pitch, the King could sense the public mood was shifting.

And Charles finally decided to strip his brother of his titles after he was heckled on a royal visit by a protester who grilled him about the disgraced duke's links to late US paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

A source said: "The King has judged the public mood and acted swiftly. The situation could not be allowed to carry on one day longer, enough was enough. This was his way of saying he understood and had listened to the people."

It came as a YouGov poll found 79% of people backed the King's decision to removed Andrew's titles and kick him out of Royal Lodge where he was living rent-free.

But 58% believe the royals acted too slowly over the Epstein links. Parliament's powerful Public Accounts Committee had piled pressure on the King by demanding answers over Andrew's living arrangements.

The final straw for Charles came when heckled on a trip to Lichfield Cathedral on Monday by the protester who shouted: "How long have you known about Andrew and Epstein? Have you asked the police to cover up for Andrew? Should MPs be allowed to debate the royals in the Commons?"

The King is understood to have been deeply concerned that public opinion about the behaviour of his brother had sunk so low.