Prince Edward previously wrote off more than £108,000 in debt that his former business venture failed to pay in rent, it has been revealed. The 62-year-old launched his TV production company, Ardent, in 1993, with offices built at his Surrey estate. While the company paid some of the rent that was due, most was waived, with the cost "absorbed by the royal couple".
Ardent is thought to have paid Edward approximately £18,000 in rent for the use of the offices at his Bagshot Park estate between 1999 and May 2003, where he still lives with Duchess Sophie to this day. This amount was despite the annual rent being set much higher, originally at £50,000 before rising to £62,500.
The amount was revealed in the National Audit Office (NAO) report on royal leases, released earlier this year. After analysing the reports, The Telegraph shared that Edward had waived £108,500 that was owed for the rent and services at the offices.
Following the reveal, palace sources confirmed that Prince Edward and his wife had absorbed the cost of the unpaid rent themselves.
Ardent was never far from controversy during its active period, with Edward accused of abusing his position by making a string of programmes about the Royal Family. Edward made a documentary about the restoration of Windsor Castle and the history of his great-uncle, Edward VIII, titled Edward on Edward.
The company was also forced to apologise for sending a camera crew to St Andrews while Prince William, his nephew, was at university there. This was due to a breach of privacy guidelines agreed by media companies.
Edward stepped down from production duties in 2002 to focus on royal engagements, whilst the business formally entered voluntary liquidation in June 2009.
