Nether Lypiatt, the country house of Prince and Princess Michael of Kent.

Nether Lypiatt, the 36-acre estate and country house of Prince and Princess Michael of Kent, has been reduced from £6m to £5.5m after nine months languishing unsold on the market.

The 1703 manor house, in Bisley, near Stroud, Gloucestershire, was bought by the Kent’s in 1981 for £300,000. It sports eight bedrooms, six bathrooms and has four staff flats.

Recent reports suggested that noise from the nearby Pony Club may have put prospective purchasers off. But one insider is alleged to have described the state of decoration as “dog-eared” and the decor as like a “giant boudoir”.

Property experts have suggested that a price of £4.5m is more realistic.

If you’re a dashing Lord about town, an Oxford graduate, and a cousin to the Queen, you might be surprised if your girlfriend dumped you for a 46-year-old former boyfriend of Joan Collins.

But that’s what has happened to Lord Frederick Windsor, son of Prince and Princess Michael of Kent. Freddie, 26, has been dealt a body blow by the actions of Marina Hanbury, 22, former model and clothes designer.

Such was the shock that boulevadier Lord Frederick hardly ever goes out now, according to press reports.

A friend laments: “He really loved Marina, but she prefers older men.”

Time is a great healer, Freddie.

Prince and Princess Michael of Kent’s £6m home in Gloucestershire is still up for sale, despite earlier indications that buyers were interested. Regular readers may remember that Nether Lypiatt, the Kent’s eight-bedroom mansion, was feaured on their Christmas card which carried a hand-written message from the Princess seeming to suggest that a sale was close.

However, that was not to be, and the house has now been on the market for eight months without a buyer in sight.

The reason for the lack of a purchaser for Nether Lypiatt seems to be the rowdy nature of Stroud Pony Club, which has its base in a field opposite.

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