When Sarah Ferguson appeared on Good Morning Britain, dressed in a sharp pinstripe blazer with her famous flaming red hair set in regal waves, there was only one thing anyone wanted to know: why hasn’t she been invited to the King’s coronation next month?
The Duchess of York was meant to be on the show to promote her latest Mills & Boon novel, but the interview soon turned to her striking snub by the new King and Queen. Fergie confirmed her NFI status, saying matter-of-factly that she hadn’t been sent an invitation because “it’s a state occasion and being divorced, I don’t think you can have it both ways.” Except to many. it did seem an odd snub — after all both Camilla and Charles are divorcees, as is Andrew Parker-Bowles will be attending.
But while in public the Duchess has been putting on a brave face, gamely telling anyone who’ll listen that she plans to watch the big event at home on the telly, with the late Queen’s Corgis Sandy and Muick by her side (she and Prince Andrew took the dogs in after the Queen’s death in September), some are concerned that underneath it all, she’s desperately upset over the rejection. Over recent months, it seemed as if Fergie was finally being welcomed back into the fold after decades spent out in the cold. In December it was reported that she was invited to spend Christmas at Sandringham with the Royal Family for the first time since she split with Prince Andrew 30 years ago, and it’s understood that the King and Camilla also invited her to take part in the royals’ Easter celebrations earlier this month. In the wake of that, this very public snub seems all the more baffling and surprising.
Certainly, the decision appears to have split royal watchers. After the snub was first reported, royal author Omid Scobie tweeted: “If true, this feels kinda cruel, no?” In the public’s consciousness at least, the Duchess is a member of the Royal Family, so many believe she should have been brought into the fold by now, particularly as the mother of the much-loved Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie. She has always been steadfastly supportive of the royals and has gone out of her way to repeatedly sing their praises, in particular the new King and Queen. In recent interviews she’s been quoted as saying “what an extraordinary man” the King is and “how fortunate we are to have him on the throne.” She also commented on how Charles and Camilla are doing “an exceptional job at unifying the family”.
Let’s not forget, too, the staggering loyalty the Duchess has shown to her ex-husband in the wake of the recent Jeffrey Epstein scandal, resolutely standing by him when few would. The Queen in particular was said to be grateful for this support, with Ferguson revealing in an interview earlier in the year that Her Majesty was “very relieved” to have her help and that it brought the pair “even closer”. The Duchess was known to have a close relationship with the Queen, with the pair often going on dog walks together on the Windsor Estate. Many insiders feel an invitation to the Coronation is the least the King could do to thank Fergie for that support – particularly seeing as we know there’s a space free now that the Duchess of Sussex has confirmed she will not be flying over from California for the big day.
Those close to her, however, say Fergie doesn’t see the lack of invitation to the formal proceedings as a snub, and understands that it’s merely protocol. “There is no reason for Charles or Camilla to include Fergie [in the Coronation],” says editor-in-chief of Majesty magazine Ingrid Seward, who’s known Ferguson and her family since 1984. “Protocol dictates that the divorced wife is no longer a member of the Royal Family, regardless of how close to the Queen she might have been. She knows that and has admitted it herself.”
This isn’t the first time Fergie has found herself persona non grata at a formal family occasion. She was not one of the 30 guests at Prince Philip’s funeral in April 2021, and she wasn’t invited to Prince William and Kate’s wedding in 2011, saying she went on a holiday to Thailand instead. But there are certain snubs that are said to have wounded the open-hearted Duchess. “Far worse for Fergie, and I think very unkind, was her being omitted from the party given by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex after their wedding at Frogmore House,” says Seward. “Fergie should have definitely been there. She has always been very supportive and generous to Harry and her daughters are his good friends. That would have hurt her. Not being given a Coronation invite would not.”
Fergie has long divided royal watchers – some see her almost as a national treasure, an inspirationally resilient figure who has managed to overcome financial and personal problems within the Royal Family. Others, meanwhile, see her as a liability and a potential source of embarrassment for the royals, prone to make a seismic gaffe at any moment. Those in the latter camp praise Charles’s decision to keep her away from the Coronation. “She was always seen as a rather loose cannon and has long been formally separated from the Royal Family,” says former royal correspondent Stephen Bates, author of Royalty Inc: Britain’s Best-Known Brand. “Her appearance [at the Coronation] would probably spark unwelcome reminders.”
Those “unwelcome reminders” could come in many forms, for while the Duchess has endeared herself to the public with her frank openness and willingness to ‘speak her truth’ – she was once described by an interviewer as wearing her heart not so much on her sleeve as from “head to toe” – this sort of behaviour doesn’t often curry favour with palace insiders. When Ferguson first married Andrew in 1986 she was seen as a positive force for The Firm and a breath of fresh air, but it wasn’t long before things soured. Before the palace formally announced that the couple were separating in March 1992, speculation was rife that she was having an affair with American Steve Wyatt. The romantic tryst was confirmed when photos were leaked to the press of him holidaying with the Duchess and her young daughter Beatrice. A few months later, the infamous toe-sucking photo of Fergie on holiday with her ‘financial adviser’, Texan financier John Bryan, hit the papers. It’s said that was the final straw, and Fergie and Andrew officially divorced in 1996.
But despite giving up her HRH title after her divorce, the Duchess refused to slink away quietly. She penned not one but two memoirs: My Story in 1996, in which she discussed the breakdown of her marriage, and Finding Sarah in 2012, where she chronicled her battles with debt and disordered eating. Over the years she’s taken part in a plethora of money-making schemes, some more successful than others, ranging from writing children’s books and appearing in reality TV shows to becoming the face of Weight Watchers and her latest foray into the world of Mills & Boon romances. She reached an all-time low in 2010 when she was filmed by the now-defunct News of the World offering an undercover reporter access to Prince Andrew for £500,000.
“The list of people who have married into the royal family and seen their reputations dumped is a long one and Fergie falls into this category, rightly or wrongly,” says one well-placed royal insider. “Almost from the start she behaved improperly in her marriage and has managed to embarrass herself and the family she married into in equal measure. So, is it any surprise she won't be at Westminster Abbey?”
There was one member of the Royal Family, however, who always had a soft spot for Fergie: the Queen. It’s said the pair had a close bond, having known each other before Fergie’s marriage to Andrew because her father, Major Ronald Ferguson, was the royal polo manager. Despite all the controversies that surrounded Fergie, the Queen very publicly stood by her and in the last month of her reign made a point of supporting the Duchess and spending a lot of time with her, even going for walks together in Windsor Park. Sources say the Queen found Fergie “warm”, “loyal” and “amusing”, while Ferguson has gushingly described the late Queen as her “wonderful best friend” and as “more of a mother to me than my own”. Many of those closest to Fergie believe the Queen would have wanted her to be at the Coronation.
For her part, Ferguson has always maintained that she feels it’s more important to be included in the intimate family events than the state occasions. The reports that Fergie is to be a VIP attendee at the Coronation Concert in Windsor the following day suggest perhaps the King is aware of that. She’s expected to be a guest of honour at the gig, joining Prince Andrew and daughters Beatrice and Eugenie on the East Lawn of Windsor Castle, where the concert is being held. “Just because I’m not there on the state occasion, in private, I can be there,” she said during her Good Morning Britain interview. “And that’s a lovely feeling to be a part of the family. It really is.”
Those closest to her agree Fergie is taking the whole situation in her stride. “I am certain she will be invited to other things and is going to the concert, as are many closer friends,” says Seward. “Fergie is sensible and although it would be nice for Andrew to have her [at the Coronation], she knew it would never happen.”
