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Woman’s royal insider Duncan Larcombe says Sarah Ferguson will be welcomed back into the family following the Duke of Edinburgh’s death
Fergie and Andrew: Time to go public?
The Duchess of York’s 30 years as outcast may finally be ending, following the death of Prince Philip. Sources close to Prince Andrew say he has been longing for the day when his ex-wife Sarah is no longer frozen out of the Royal family.
They said his father’s death last month had ‘removed the final obstacle’ to her taking a more active role at Andrew’s side, and revealed that they have been living as husband and wife now for more than a year, with – as Woman revealed – talks of them getting hitched again.
Back in the family?
Neither Andrew or Fergie have held down serious relationships since their divorce and when, in 2010, Fergie was caught by a newspaper sting, seemingly selling access to the royals for cash, Prince Andrew stood by her.
For her part, Fergie has supported her ex throughout the row over his friendship with convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein and Andrew’s disastrous TV interview on the subject, which forced the Queen to effectively sack her own son from royal duties.
But, addressing the accusations made against Andrew, Fergie said, ‘The great news is that Andrew and I and the girls are the best family unit there ever is. I know him extremely, extremely well. Buckingham Palace put out a denial two weeks ago or a week ago, and we stand by that denial.’
My palace source tells me, ‘The duke and duchess have an unconventional but surprisingly strong relationship, and one which Prince Philip refused to acknowledge.’
Now the Duke of Edinburgh has passed away, there is no real obstacle in the way of Sarah coming out of the shadows, as far as the rest of the family are concerned.
The Duke of York never challenged his father over the issue out of respect for his strongly held views. At times this
was very painful for Andrew, especially when he had to attend weddings and funerals on his own.
Andrew was comforted by the fact his mother did not feel as strongly towards Fergie as the duke.
I understand that Fergie would often speak to Her Majesty, and there have also been reports that the two have ‘met for tea’ over the years, despite objections from the Duke of Edinburgh.
Scandal
Fergie secured pariah status in the eyes of her father-in-law after pictures of her having her toes sucked by a financial adviser made the front pages of newspapers in the summer of 1992.
The scandal – which broke as the royals holidayed at Balmoral – became the straw that broke the camel’s back, as far as Prince Philip was concerned.
He had never approved of his second son’s choice of bride but the ‘humiliation’ she brought to the family that summer meant enough was enough for Philip.
From that day onwards, he refused to be in the same room as his son’s ex-wife – a vow he maintained right up until his death 29 years later.
Such was Philip’s scorn for Fergie, she was never allowed to join her daughters on family occasions, nor was she invited to any royal weddings or major birthday celebrations.
Close as ever
However, despite all the odds, Andrew and Fergie have remained close, with some sources describing their connection as ‘one of the strongest relationships’ in the entire Royal Family.
While the couple’s divorce in March 1992 may have seemed at the time to be acrimonious, the reality is they have always stayed close and supported each other when times were tough.
Despite the separation, it’s clear that Andrew means a lot to Fergie. She previously said, ‘He’ll always be my handsome prince.’
And I understand that Fergie has been an ‘unlikely pillar of strength’ for Prince Andrew throughout the whole Epstein outrage. One of my royal sources told me, ‘The Duke and Duchess of York may have divorced in 1992, but their relationship has stayed strong and survived the tests of time.’
They have always been a united front for their two daughters, holidayed as a family, celebrated birthdays together and lived at Royal Lodge whenever the duchess was in the UK.
During lockdown this close relationship was maintained, as they lived like virtual husband and wife together at the family home in Windsor Great Park.
My fellow royal correspondent Jennie Bond has commented on the fact Andrew and Fergie are never far apart, saying, ‘I’ve no idea if they share a marital bed or pop along the corridor to hop in one another’s bed – I suspect they probably do. They always come back together.’
At the very least, Prince Philip’s death will mean that Fergie is now more likely to be invited to spend time with other members of the Royal Family at private gettogethers, such as the summer gathering in Scotland. Watch this space.
‘THEY HAVE SUPPORTED EACH OTHER’