Prince Andrew wants to start using his HRH title again and is keen to "test the waters", a source has claimed.
The Duke of York stepped down from royal duties and his mother the late Queen stripped him of his military affiliations and patronages in the wake of a sex scandal.
As well as being stripped of his patronages and honorary military titles, he was also ordered not to use his HRH status.
However, now it has been reported that should he get consent from his brother King Charles, he could start using his HRH again in a "low-key" way.
It is said that Andrew knows he won't ever return to royal duties or take back any patronages that were stripped from him.
But according to the Daily Mail's Ephraim Hardcastle column, he is "perplexed" as to why he can't use his HRH title - although there will be no formal announcement on it.
A source told the newspaper: "It is more likely that he will just start using it again in a low-key way to test the waters – should he get the King's consent."
Andrew was last seen in public on Christmas Day when he made a surprise appearance, along with the rest of his family, as they walked to church for their annual festive service at Sandringham.
He had not been expected to join his relatives but walked with them alongside his younger daughter Princess Eugenie and her husband Jack Brooksbank.
And according to body language expert Judi James, Andrew looked "very much like the victim of a cull" during the church visit as he walked several paces behind the group.
She said: "Charles had walked with his brother away from the crowds in a gesture of loyalty at Andrew's first church service after the notorious BBC interview, but this time Andrew walked alone, alongside but outside the royal pack.
"His wide eyes and his ashen face made him look wary and haunted.
"His head was held high at times but there appeared to be no one stepping up from the chatty and tactile group of royals to join him or to include him, leaving him walking several paces outside the very upbeat, tactile groups with his hands stuffed into his pockets.
"Andrew might have managed a more inclusive look during the Queen's funeral when appearances were more formal and military but in an informal scenario like this, he was revealed to be more on the outside of the royal pack than inside."
