Prince Andrew ‘the best’: Fergie

Sarah Ferguson paid a glowing tribute to her ex-husband Monday as he chose to stay silent about claims that he sexually abused a 17-year-old girl. Speaking for the first time since the allegations surfaced, the duchess, who was divorced from Prince Andrew in 1996 but still shares a home with him, described him as “the best man in the world.” The prince flew home from a skiing holiday on Sunday, and spent Monday speaking to lawyers and aides about his next move. Having issued three denials last week, the prince’s advisers told him to remain silent from now on, and Buckingham Palace refused to answer more questions about the claims made by American Virginia Roberts, now 30. Prince Andrew is also understood to be taking advice over whether there are grounds to take legal action or to complain to the independent media watchdog about coverage of Roberts’s claims.