Why Fergie is the key to peace at the palace this Christmas
After a turbulent year, the last thing King Charles needed was a difficult December, but Prince Andrew is the gift that keeps on giving. Fortunately, there’s someone uniquely positioned to help – although being the voice of calm isn’t what she’s traditionally known for. Harry Mount reports
Might Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, be an unlikely peace broker for the royal family? Insiders believe so, particularly in light of the latest controversy involving her ex-husband, Prince Andrew. Revelations about Andrew’s close ties to alleged Chinese spy, Yang Tengbo, have cast him even further into royal exile. Neither he, Ferguson, nor their daughters will join King Charles for Christmas lunch at Sandringham – a privilege that Queen Elizabeth II always extended to her supposedly favourite son. After discussions with Ferguson, Andrew has also reportedly opted out of the annual Buckingham Palace Christmas lunch on Thursday.
Until the last moment, Andrew was reportedly adamant about attending the lunch, unable to see why he should miss a family gathering. It appears Ferguson was instrumental in persuading him to reconsider.
Ferguson has also been vital in maintaining a bridge between King Charles and Andrew amid ongoing tensions, particularly over Andrew’s housing. While Andrew wishes to remain at the sprawling Royal Lodge in Windsor Great Park, the King would prefer he relocate to Frogmore Cottage – the more modest Windsor home once earmarked for the Sussexes before their move to California.
Palace insiders suggest Ferguson may be the only person capable of convincing Andrew to accept the move, which they believe better suits his reduced status.
Acting as a mediator between royal households is not only something Ferguson excels at but also a role she is now embracing with typical gusto. In a recent Sunday Times interview, she expressed her desire to contribute more to the monarchy: “I want to do as much for the Queen as possible. I wish they’d ask me to do more.”
The interview was filled with affection for King Charles. “I’ve known the King all my life and I absolutely adore him. He’s kind, he makes me laugh, and I love that he still calls me Fergie,” she said.
Fergie’s deep-rooted connection to the royal family is well documented. Her father, the late Ronald Ferguson, served as polo manager for both Prince Philip and Prince Charles, giving her proximity to the royals from an early age. She reflected on this during the interview: “Queen Camilla was close friends with Mum, which is why we’re so close now. She reminds me of Mum. I admire the extraordinary support she’s giving this country.”
Despite her numerous cack-handed blunders over the years – including the infamous toe-sucking incident with John Bryan in 1992 – Fergie has remained a steadfast figure within royal circles.
Recalling her childhood, she shared, “At Dummer [the Ferguson family home], Mum would say, ‘Don’t be naughty with the Prince of Wales when he comes to stay. Don’t duck him in the pool.’ I’d duck him straight in the pool and put a fake dog turd outside his room. He thought it was hilarious.”
It is a story that reflects Fergie’s character: warm, playful, and full of affection. Yet, this part of her larger-than-life personality has often gotten her into trouble and made her her own worst enemy.
Money struggles have often been at the root of her problems. In 2010, she was caught in a cash-for-access scandal involving the News of the World’s fake sheikh. When I went to interview her in 2005 it was at Manhattan’s Stage Deli when she was promoting a Duchess of York Sandwich – stuffed with the GourMayo wasabi horseradish light mayo she’d been hired to endorse.
But, despite her travails, Ferguson has always been the beating heart of her family. A royal courtier once described her daughters, Beatrice and Eugenie, as well-mannered and well-raised, taught to write proper thank you letters and uphold traditional values. Reflecting on how she sees parenting, Ferguson has said, “Andrew and I have a family unity that’s stable, open, and secure. I can safely say to my girls: learn from my mistakes.”
Her conversation might often veer into New Age self-help territory – “I’m moving from dark to light, from negativity to positivity,” she once said – but it’s her sincerity and warmth most remark on when meeting her and it has stood her in good stead when navigating the political complexities of royal life.
Prince Philip famously found her hard to tolerate, and she was banned from Sandringham Christmases until his death in 2021. However, Queen Elizabeth II always maintained a fondness for Ferguson, even leaving her corgis to her upon her death. Ferguson has said, “Queen Elizabeth and I got on so well. My mum was her close friend, so she knew me all my life and she loved me. The Queen was much more my mother than my mother was. I called her Mumma. She never let me down, even if I let her down.”
This enduring loyalty perhaps explains why Ferguson continues to stand by Andrew, even amid the fallout from his connections to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell and his disastrous 2019 Newsnight interview. She has an insatiable urge to make her decisions right no matter how wrong-footed they may have been. As she declared, “I was totally and utterly in love with Andrew. I would do it all over again, 100 per cent. He’s the best, a great man with a great heart, and kind.”
She is known to live by the three Cs: communication, compromise, compassion – a mantra that not only explains her indulgence of Andrew but also her role in mediating between the King and his troublesome younger brother.
Isolated and ostracised, Andrew now relies on Ferguson more than ever. While he isn’t known for his capacity to take advice, his absence from this week’s palace lunch suggests that Ferguson is one voice he trusts.
Ferguson’s determination to restore harmony already earned her a spot at Sandringham last Christmas, where she joined the royal walkabout for the first time since 1991. Though unlikely to be offered any formal royal role, Ferguson’s charm still may hold the key to easing family tensions. She is uniquely able to make Andrew palatable enough for the royal family to endure his presence at future family occasions.
For how long Andrew takes her advice is another matter. That remains beyond even Ferguson’s power to control.
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