Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York: from scandal to liberation

There are many titles and skills attributed to the Duchess of York. Of course, she is the mother to princesses and grandmother to the youngest members of the royal family; but Sarah Ferguson has many more titles and a lot more stories to tell, perhaps you remember some or her most scandalous moments?

The Duchess of York is well known for her love for writing, having penned a number of children's books as well as her autobiography - before starting her career in romantic fiction. Fergie has a new novel, which was released on 7th March 2023: 'A Most Intriguing Lady', which, she says, comes from a now 'authentic' Sarah.

The Duchess spoke to Good Morning America about her new novel. "I feel liberated," Sarah said when the conversation veered towards the current Royal Family. "I don't know whether it's the Queen passing that makes me think I can now openly say what I want to say without worrying I'm going to offend somebody. I'm really, truly authentic Sarah now."

Queen Elizabeth II died in early September of 2022 and the pair certainly did not have an easy royal family journey together. Yet, even so, the Duchess said, "She was my idol. She was my legend," to the Good Morning America audience.

In fact, as Sarah herself points out, it seems there are a number of similarities between herself and the characters of her book. "Sarah is cheeky. She's feisty. She's rebellious. In my life, it's not just Royal institution and monarchy, it's a bureaucracy that tries to allow this redhead to conform," she said.

"I believe in the absolute, unequivocal institution of monarchy, I totally support the King and the Queen consort - I've known them all my life. I know the rules," Sarah commented in the GMA interview. But, the question is, did she follow them?

For many royal chroniclers, Sarah Ferguson has had the honor of being the daughter-in-law whom the late Queen Elizabeth II of England disliked the most. The wife of Prince Andrew, from 1986 to 1996, regularly embarrassed the royal family with controversial public appearances, taking dodgy cash and following her own path to liberation.

Although Sarah Ferguson is connected to the British Royal Family by marriage and the births of her children, the crown has never looked kindly on this young, working-class girl becoming a princess. "When I was 18, I cleaned student bathrooms and dorms," Sarah said on Swedish television's Skavlan. "I was also a waitress in a strudel shop."

Despite criticism, Sarah Ferguson and Prince Andrew got married at Westminster Abbey in London on July 23, 1986. As Andrew was the Duke of York, Sarah now became the Duchess of York.

After the wedding, attended by nearly 2,000 guests, the couple performed an act of rebellion against the crown. "I remember that we were told not to kiss on the balcony," Ferguson recalls in the documentary 'Finding Sarah.' "So we did it deliberately. We were very much in love".

During the early years of Sarah Ferguson and Andrew's marriage, the Duchess soon began to feel the harassment of the media. When Meghan Markle endured similar harassment in 2019, Ferguson told Vogue Arabia that "she's being treated like me. I really think I can identify with her."

"I'm not much of a counselor, really, but I've been in Meghan's shoes and I think I still am," she continued. "It's sad and exhausting. I abhor harassment and feel very sorry for the pain that must be going on, because I've been through it myself."

Sarah Ferguson and Andrew from England became first-time parents on August 8, 1988. Their little girl came into the world as Beatrice of York.

Two years later, a second, healthy girl was born: Eugenie of York. Her birthday was March 23, 1990.

However, Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson appeared to be unhappy together, because their marriage ended in 1992. That year, the official announcement came of the separation between Ferguson and the Prince. It took until 1996 for the divorce to materialize.

HELLO reported at the time that Sarah was accused by the Crown of "leaking the [divorce] news 24 hours earlier to the Daily Mail." In addition, they pointed to "photographs of Sarah with Texas billionaire Steve Wyatt." There were rumours about the longstanding "hostile treatment" endured by Ferguson "because of her reluctance to conform to Crown standards."

In a 2007 Harpers Bazaar special interview, the Duchess spoke out as to why the couple divorced. The divorce seemed to be more from the family than from Andrew himself. "I wanted to work," she said, "It's not right for a princess of the royal house to be commercial, so Andrew and I decided to make the divorce official so I could go off and get a job."

In 1996, the divorce of Andrew and his controversial wife was official. Ferguson lost her 'Royal Highness' title, but she was still allowed to call herself Duchess. "The knives are out for Fergie," BBC diplomatic correspondent Paul Reynolds reported.

According to Reynolds, the "knives" phrase was overheard in a private conversation with Queen Elizabeth II's then press secretary, Mr. Charles Anson. "Rarely have I heard the palace staff talk like this about anyone. Sarah Ferguson is unable to appear at public functions as a member of the Royal Family."

In the midst of this very tense climate, the Duke and Duchess of York began to reappear together in public. The former couple always maintained a very good relationship, which of course triggered rumors of a reconciliation. But they never amounted to anything more than rumors.

Looking back on Sarah Ferguson's time in the royal family, as well as the years after the divorce, journalists have argued that she often embarrassed herself and the people close to her. BBC journalist Rajesh Mirchandani summarizes Sarah Ferguson's reputation as follows: "Her efforts to help others have always been overshadowed by her attempts to help herself."

The BBC particularly pointed to the supposed exploitation of her position as Prince Andrew's wife. "Fergie, as she is called, has been criticized for taking countless days off and selling her family photos to a magazine."

In the 1990s, after the divorce, Ferguson had to move to a smaller house due to serious financial problems. She became the face of different brands in order to make ends meet. Ferguson even tried to break through in the entertainment world, for example by making a guest appearance in 'Friends'.

Ferguson was, in fact, a producer on the 2009 film, 'The Young Victoria', starring Emily Blunt. The Duchess has also worked on a TV documentary about Prince Albert’s mother. But it did not bring her fortune.

While she was going nearly bankrupt in 2010, she had to deal with the constant factor of negative treatment by the British press. Some sharp-tongued journalists called her 'Duchess of Pork.'

And more scandal was added to the mix. In 2010, News of the World published a video of Sarah Ferguson accepting a briefcase with 32,000 euros (an advance of a larger amount) in exchange for a backdoor appointment of a journalist with her ex-husband Andrew. After it all became public, Ferguson apologized and blamed her mistake on "financial problems."

Then, a year later, according to the BBC, she admitted getting money from Jeffrey Epstein. Some of her debts had been paid off by the late sex offender, after an intervention from the Duke of York himself. She called it a 'gigantic error,' as the BBC reported.

In 2016, The Guardian included Sarah Ferguson's name in the so-called Panama Papers. It alluded to a possible relationship between the Duchess of York and the controversial law firm Mossack Fonseca.

In 2018, things were looking up for the Duchess, she was finally invited to a royal wedding! She had been invited to Harry & Meghan's wedding; after not being invited to Edward and Sophie's or William and Kates. Was this when things turned around for Fergie? Not this time. She wasn't invited to the party at Frogmore.

In 2019, after the involvement of Prince Andrew in the Epstein scandal, Sarah Ferguson once again sought the spotlights. She spoke out in support of the prince. "I support him deeply and am proud of this great man," the Duchess of York declared, after journalists and law enforcement officials had questioned him about alleged sexual misconduct with minors.

"Andrew is a man of principle," she said, "who dares to face adversity and stand firm with his sense of honor and truth." For Sarah Ferguson, her ex-partner continued to be "family." To see him suffer, she stated, was "really painful."

"The last six months have been difficult for the girls and me," Ferguson revealed in December 2019. Prince Andrew had laid down his official tasks as a member of the Royal House.

The problems did not end with the turning of the calendar year. In 2020, Andrew faced more accusations and COVID-19 hindered their eldest daughter Beatrice from having a big royal wedding.

Then, her name was finally taken off the royal website. As of December 2021 she is not listed on a section of the royal family's website titled "Members of the Royal Family" and is certainly not part of Charles' streamlined view of the monarchy.

'Her Heart for a Compass' is the first (adult) novel by Sarah Ferguson. The novel is a semi-fictional story about the Duchess's great-great-aunt, Lady Margaret Montagu Douglas Scott. It was a top ten best seller.

The book did well in the shops, but not so well with the critics. The Times's Sarah Ditum called the novel a "thinly veiled wish fulfilment fantasy" that "is more slog than seduction" and rated it two out of five stars.

In January 2022, Andrew was stripped of his titles. She had stated in an interview on the Italian talk show 'Porta a Porta,' in 2021: "I completely stand by Andrew 100 percent. He is such a kind, great man, he is a brilliant father and now a fantastic grandfather."

So, after years of turmoil and a good number of mistakes, the Duchess of York seems to be finding her happy place. With new books and new grandchildren on the way, this royal whirlwind has certainly had more than a few stories to tell in her journey into - and out of - the Royal family.