Richard Eden has revealed what happened when he called a tenant in one of the homes on the Sandringham estate – to let them know they were to be evicted so Prince William and Kate could move into the property.

The Daily Mail’s royal expert discussed the story during a recent episode of Palace Confidential, when asked by host Jo Elvin about his favourite royal story.

According to Richard, he ‘got wind that Queen Elizabeth was going to be giving a new house to William and Catherine as […] a belated wedding gift’.

He jokingly added: ‘Other people might give their child or their grandchild […] some nice plates or a microwave.

‘But in the royal family, they can give houses. And the Queen decided to give them Anmer Hall.’

However, he continued, there was a ‘slight problem’ – which was that there was someone living in the 10-bedroom Georgian home.

The tenant was reportedly James Everett, who owned kitchen timber company, Norfolk Oak.

He and his family had moved to the property in the early 2000s, and had a lease which ran until 2017.

Speaking during Palace Confidential, Richard continued: ‘I remember ringing up the man whose family were living at this house.

‘I said: “We’ve heard that your house is about to be given to William and Catherine”.

‘I’ll be honest with you, he wasn’t that happy.’

But, as Richard noted, one of the terms of the lease was that if the property is required by a member of the Royal Family, tenants have to move out.

He added that the family moved to another property, and ‘in the end, they were, they were perfectly happy’.

Richard also noted that ‘it was a great story’, and he was ‘delighted when it turned out to be true’.

The 19th Century Georgian country house sits among acres of forests and open fields in the village of Anmer, Norfolk.

It has previously been described as William and Kate’s favourite place.

It was built in 1802, and acquired by the Sandringham Estate sometime after Queen Victoria purchased the house in around 1862.

It has previously been leased to business owners, civil servants, and members of the British royal family.

William and Kate have been living there since a £1.5million refurbishment was completed in 2014.

However, it has been reported that their visits have become less frequent with the death of Queen Elizabeth and their move to a property in the grounds of Windsor Castle.

While Anmer Hall was the family’s main residence for some time, they have since moved to Forest Lodge in Windsor Great Park.