Fury as royal palace charges visitors £27 for free garden walk

WHILE Boris Johnson has been allowed to go jogging at Buckingham Palace, there’s outrage among those wishing to exercise in other royal gardens.

For walkers have been told that they must now pay £27 for the privilege of entering the gardens of Hampton Court Palace, the former home of Henry VIII. It was previously free of charge.

One disgruntled walker, Polly Smith, tells me: ‘The gardens have always been free to enjoy, but I was told I had to buy a full-price adult ticket at £27. When I asked why, they said it was because of Covid-19 and the fact that the royal palaces have lost revenue.’

Ms Smith, a financial consultant from London, adds: ‘This is outrageous, particularly when the Government is urging people to lose weight. When I refused to pay, they had the cheek to tell me to buy a [£55] membership.’

Hampton Court is run for the Queen by Historic Royal Palaces. It faces a devastating £98million blow to its finances because of the pandemic and blames social distancing for the new charge.

‘For safety reasons, we have temporarily suspended free access to some of our smaller gardens,’ says a spokesman, who confirms that visitors to the Rose Garden, Wilderness and Kitchen Garden must now pay.

‘We are very grateful to have received lots of support from local residents, who understand that we are maintaining these beautiful gardens, and Home Park, at a time when our finances are under significant pressure.’

However, Ms Smith claims: ‘It’s bad enough that we, as taxpayers, have to pay for things like security for Prince Harry and Meghan when they don’t even want to be part of the Royal Family, but to have to pay to walk in the gardens is astonishing, and especially to use Covid as an excuse.’

In fact, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s £4million-a-year security costs in America are said to be paid privately.