The Real Reason Prince Philip Wanted "Vulgar" Sarah Ferguson Out of the Family
The Duke of Edinburgh was never a fan of his once-daughter-in-law.
The divorce of Sarah Ferguson, aka Sarah, Duchess of York, or Fergie, and Prince Andrew, the second son of Queen Elizabeth, was one of the highest profile stories of the 1990s. After all, it isn't every day that a member of the Royal Family decides to call it quits with their significant other. While you would assume the Royal Family would be disappointed to have such a scandal surrounding them, according to royal experts there was one person who has happy to have to bid the Duchess adieu: Prince Philip.
According to the latest episode of hit podcast The Firm: Blood, Lies and Royal Succession, the Duke of Edinburgh disliked Fergie long before she joined the family, and considered her a "persona non grata at the Royal Family." Royal biographer Jane Dismore dished on the podcast: "She's the one person that Prince Philip would not have anything to do with. He didn't like Fergie – she knew that she wasn't welcome when Prince Philip was around."
The Queen's husband wasn't the only one who disliked the Duchess. "Ferguson's idea of being royal was best summed up by one of the courtiers who said, 'vulgar, vulgar, vulgar,'" added royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams. "She hadn't an idea of what being Royal really meant. it wasn't just the awful lapses of judgment. It was an attitude to Royal life."
According to the podcast, the Royal Family was embarrassed by her financial problems, which landed her in massive debt, and reported affairs, including those infamous photos of Fergie with her boyfriend, American financial manager John Bryan, who sucked her toes as she sunbathed topless.
Per the podcast, when Fergie tried to sell Prince Andrew out to the News of the World for $500,000, the Duke really couldn't stand his former daughter-in-law. "After that Prince Philip decided that she was just out of it, he would never deal with her, would not attend events with her," Richard Mineards, a royal reporter added. "And of course the Queen being the subservient wife agreed with him. And so Fergie was totally out of the picture."
Cele Otnes, author of Royal Fever added: "He was so angry with her for embarrassing the family like that, that he basically declared her persona non grata at the Royal Family."
The real plot twist, according to the podcast is that Fergie and Andrew are living together again, after his involvement in the Jeffrey Epstein scandal and the sexual assault accusations made by Vriginia Giuffre. "If you had a poll of people who wanted to see Prince Andrew on the balcony of Buckingham Palace again, let alone Sarah Ferguson, you wouldn't get it into double figures," Fitzwilliams added. "So, they might remarry. They are close. Fair enough… but there's no interest in seeing more of Fergie. It's not feasible because she's divorced from Andrew who stepped down in disgrace."
