albatross round someone's neck something that is burdensome to someone and hinders their progress, especially arising from some misdeed of their own in the past.

☞ From the albatross shot dead by the sailor in Coleridge's poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (1798), which brought his ship bad luck. The bird was hung round his neck as a sign of his guilt.

2000Sunday Herald Being the offspring of a famous guy has become an albatross round the neck of many a budding young lion.