Royal Match

Buckingham Palace's Tinder And Grindr Quandry

Concerns raised that live-in royal staff are bringing back an increasing number of unvetted ‘sleazy’ overnight guests they may only have recently met on dating apps

So, there you are, in the fleshpots of London town, swiping left and swiping right on Tinder, when your new match comes up as being just round the corner from Buckingham Palace.

Intrigued? Who wouldn’t be.

But instead of landing yourself a prince or princess, you are more likely to be organizing a hook-up with one of the many royal staff who live in close proximity to the royal palaces.

Now, concerns have been raised that live-in royal staff members who have accommodation in Royal Mews (just around the back of Buckingham Palace) and St James’s Palace are bringing back an increasing number of unvetted ‘sleazy’ overnight guests they may only have recently met on dating apps such as Grindr and Tinder.

A former head of royal protection, Chief Superintendent Dai Davies, told the Daily Mail that the issue of overnight guests in palace accommodation had historically been the ‘Achilles heel’ of royal security and made “a complete mockery of the security structure.”

A Palace aide, however, told the Daily Beast that they were not “overly concerned” by the issue of hook-up app guests.

“A newspaper has tried to tie it in with the security aspect, but we never talk about security. The reality is that many members of staff live in and around the environment of the royal household and continue to do so,” they said.

While most live-in servants –including butlers, maids and kitchen staff – are not allowed to bring guests into Buckingham Palace itself, they are permitted to sign in unvetted visitors to their living quarters at St James’s Palace and the Royal Mews.

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Tom SykesEuropean Editor at Large

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