Sarah Ferguson has complained of feeling abandoned by the Royal Family, but the prospect of her writing a memoir touching on her friendship with Jeffrey Epstein is set to strain relations further.
Those close to her say she would never betray royal confidences – but she needs money. To secure the £1 million-plus deal that industry insiders believe is feasible, she will have to deliver something compelling.
For the past seven months, Ferguson has been holed up abroad following a furious public reaction to revelations that she retained a friendship with the paedophile financier long after his conviction for soliciting a minor for prostitution. Despite an initial period of low mood, the former Duchess of York is now said to be “remarkably stoic”.
There are reports she wants to meet the King to discuss her situation, though nobody close to her can confirm this. The King, fresh from his diplomatic triumph in America, has already refused to meet his brother and is unlikely to welcome a Fergie audience at this stage. Prince William, meanwhile, has stayed silent in the face of reports that he wants to distance the monarchy from all of the Yorks.
It is not entirely true that Ferguson has been abandoned. When the King forced her and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor to vacate Royal Lodge – the 30-room Windsor Great Park mansion they had shared for years – he suggested they could live together at Marsh Farm, a five-bedroom house on the Sandringham estate where the former Duke now lives in effective internal exile.
But Fergie, 66, rejected the offer, insisting she was looking for somewhere in the Windsor area, before decamping to various boltholes – most recently a £2,000-a-night Austrian ski chalet. She remains lying low while her ex-husband faces police investigations into alleged misconduct in public office and potentially having sex with young women trafficked to him by Epstein, who killed himself in a Manhattan jail in August 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
But Fergie also needs cash. Despite two previous autobiographies, she is said to be planning a memoir that could include her family’s involvement with Epstein – one that would embarrass the monarchy and her ex-husband alike. One close friend previously denied she would ever write a “tell-all”.
‘A good story to tell’
This week, the same friend offered a slightly different formulation: “She never wrote a tell-all memoir about Princess Diana and would never write a tell-all memoir about the Royal Family but that doesn’t mean she might not write a memoir. She’s got a good story to tell.”
The prospect is likely to test the loyalty of her daughters and the patience of the King, who is currently funding Marsh Farm and the protection officers guarding Andrew – one of whom was called into action this week when a man was arrested after a balaclava-wearing individual allegedly threatened the former Duke while he was walking his dog on the Sandringham estate.
The fault lines inside the Royal Family were exposed this week when Fergie and Andrew were publicly snubbed by their own daughter. The announcement of Princess Eugenie’s third pregnancy on Monday followed palace convention in almost every respect – except one. The customary expression of delight from the parents or wider family was absent. “August (aged 5) and Ernest (aged 2) are also very excited to have another sibling join the family,” the statement read. “His Majesty the King has been informed and is delighted with the news.”
No mention of Andrew. No mention of Fergie.
Palace announcements follow a strict formula, and the omission seemed a significant break with tradition. In public at least, Eugenie appears to have chosen to prioritise her association with the King over any remaining loyalty to her parents.
Royal sources declined to say exactly when Andrew learned he was to become a grandfather again. But Fergie is understood to have been told before the announcement – “she is very close to both of her daughters,” a source close to her confirmed but that same source, who only months ago spoke confidently of the York family’s resilience, had no idea how Andrew’s relationships with his ex-wife and daughters were now faring.
‘Still loyal to Andrew’
Royal biographer Ingrid Seward believes the family is still in contact. “I’m sure they’re all still in touch but they clearly want to distance Andrew from it all,” she said. She also believes that the former Duke and Duchess will never totally desert each other. “He’s stayed loyal to her down the years so you’d expect her to stay loyal to him,” she said.
Ferguson, Beatrice and Eugenie could all be called to give evidence to police or parliamentary investigators, having each had dealings with Epstein and done favours for him in exchange for his financial generosity towards the family.
Beatrice and Eugenie are similarly keeping their heads down. After initially indicating the princesses had done nothing wrong and would be welcome at family events, the King and his aides appeared to row back after emails revealed the sisters had met Epstein with their mother just five days after his jail release, had been asked to show his clients around Buckingham Palace, and were at one point lined up as potential shareholders in a business venture he brokered for Fergie.
The message since has been that they may attend some family occasions – but the timing remains unresolved. Both were absent from this year’s Buckingham Palace garden party, which William has in recent years invited non-working royals including the York sisters to help host. Speculation is already growing that they will also skip Royal Ascot in June.“ The King is riding high after his diplomatic triumph in the United States,” one royal insider said. “I can’t imagine why he would want to ruin that by having them turn up at any of those events.” Seward was characteristically direct: “If they are invited to palace garden parties or Ascot, I should think they’ll have the common sense to decline. Eugenie’s pregnancy at least gives her an excuse.”
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor denies wrongdoing. Princess Eugenie did not respond to a request for comment; Sarah Ferguson declined to comment.