Charming, funny, tough. Fergie does not deserve to be trolled

WHAT sort of vile creature lurks behind their laptop to write horrible things about a woman who’s just been dealt the worst possible hand any of us could imagine?

The nasty, abusive trolls are out for Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York — affectionately known as Fergie — who’s been recovering from breast cancer and this week announced she’s also been diagnosed with malignant melanoma, an aggressive form of skin cancer. It’s especially hard for her because it’s the type of cancer her father was diagnosed with months before he died.

her friends say she remains in good spirits and is resilient, which doesn’t surprise me at all. It’s what I picked up on in 1989 when I went to interview her in her surprisingly tiny flat in Buckingham Palace. My Woman’s hour team and I were somewhat startled when she breezed into the sitting room where we were waiting.

We wondered if she might be the cleaning lady and not a princess. the glorious mass of red hair was tied up under a mop cap. a favourite t-shirt was worn over stretchy jeans and she wore slippers. there was no effort to impress and her welcome was warm and friendly. I liked her immediately.

AYear after the birth of her first child, Beatrice, we talked about her new children’s book, Budgie, the Little helicopter. the inspiration for her character was, naturally, her husband. Prince andrew had been greatly admired for his efforts as a royal Navy helicopter pilot during the Falklands War. then 30, she clearly adored and admired the man she called ‘My handsome Prince’.

It became clear, even that early in the marriage, that all might not be as well as she had hoped. She’d been criticised for travelling to australia in 1988 and leaving a young Bea at home. She had obviously wanted to spend as much uninterrupted time with her husband as possible. ‘ after all,’ she said, ‘we only get to spend some 40 days in the year together because of his naval duties. I like to spend as much time with him as I can and kind of keep an eye on what he’s up to.’

Back then, long before stories of his friendships with Jeffrey epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell began to emerge, I couldn’t help thinking: ‘I bet she does.’ We talked about Princess Diana, then 28, and how the two of them coped with finding themselves at the forefront of the royal Family and constantly in the public eye.

they could only manage it, she told me, by becoming good friends. they liked to dress up and go out on the town together, maybe sometimes being a bit naughty, but on the whole behaving themselves. It was not good to attract bad publicity that would bring the Crown into disrepute.

She acknowledged that Diana was No1 with the public and was beautiful and popular. She hinted at disappointment that she couldn’t match up, but there was no suggestion of hurt at the insults she had to endure about her weight and conduct at times.

She certainly came in for more than her fair share of criticism.

On a visit to California she’d been described as brash, vulgar and excessive. at home in the late 80s, she was ‘the Duchess of Pork’ and ‘ Fat Fergie’, insults she was well aware of, but did her best to laugh about. I found her utterly charming, friendly, unpretentious, funny and tough — and, oh my goodness, she has had to be.

By 1992 she and her husband had separated. By 1996 they were divorced — only ten years after the big wedding in Westminster abbey. I’m sure the demands of behaviour made on a 20th century royal wife were simply too restrictive for young women such as Diana and Sarah to endure.

In 1997 Diana’s life ended tragically and too soon. Sarah had to learn how to manage a new life on her own and there have been times when the devoted mother, loyal ex-wife and Duchess kept on the edge of the royal Family, has made a bit of a mess of it.

there was the texan billionaire, Steve Wyatt, whom she reportedly became infatuated with while still married to andrew. then came the american financial adviser, John Bryan, and the infamous toe- sucking incident as Sarah sunbathed topless in 1992. Over a decade later, she claimed she was tricked by an undercover reporter into offering access to her husband in return for vast sums and managed to acquire huge debts despite her efforts to earn money as a writer, film producer, and tV and radio personality. and in 2012, she made an apology for accepting money from epstein, calling it ‘a gigantic error of judgment’.

But despite all the difficulties that still surround her former husband, she has remained loyal to him, often sharing his Windsor residence. She’s raised two daughters who, like her, have been victims of insults and trolls, but both appear to be happily married and Sarah is now a gran of three.

there were hints at Christmas, when she was invited to Sandringham for the first time in years, that she was being welcomed back into the fold. She should be. all I remember of her was a warm, friendly average Joe who’d attracted the attention of the second son of the royal Family. Sarah fell in love, didn’t belong, but did her best to be charitable, do a good job and earn her own living.

I admire her, hope she has the best treatment for the sudden health diagnosis and is able to bounce back again. So lay off Fergie — and good luck to her.