Princess Anne, renowned for her dedication and straightforward nature, is no stranger to candid moments within the royal family. Her frankness has often made headlines, and, as a recent biography reveals, Sarah Ferguson—her former sister-in-law—has felt the full force of Anne’s displeasure.
The recently published biography of Sarah Ferguson and Andrew Mountbatten Windsor by Andrew Lownie sheds light on a pivotal and turbulent episode in royal history. It claims that Princess Anne was so enraged by Ferguson’s public scandal in the early 1990s that she nearly “throttled” her during a family dinner.
Sarah Ferguson, commonly known as Fergie, has lived in the public eye for over four decades and weathered numerous controversies. The most shocking of these erupted in August 1992 when she was photographed having her toes sucked by her American financial advisor, John Bryan, while holidaying in the South of France. The scandal shook the House of Windsor and drew widespread condemnation.
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According to Lownie’s book, titled Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York, Anne was furious not only with the nature of the photographs but also with how Sarah handled the fallout. The princess reportedly confronted her sister-in-law over dinner, expressing her outrage without raising her voice, while the rest of the family silently concurred.
The drama unfolded further when Sarah arrived at Balmoral to join Prince Andrew and other royal family members, unaware that the scandal had become front-page news. She found them reading the media coverage during breakfast, which led to an awkward and tense atmosphere. Witnesses recount that Anne’s anger was so intense it nearly manifested physically.
One staff member who witnessed the episode remarked on Sarah’s bewildering reaction, noting she seemed to portray herself as the victim despite being caught in a compromising position. The staffer observed that Sarah acted as if the real culprits were the photographers who captured the intimate moment and the newspapers that published the pictures.
The scandal marked a turning point in Sarah and Andrew’s marriage. The couple separated later in 1992 and eventually divorced years afterward. Despite the separation, they maintained a close relationship and continued living together at Royal Lodge near Windsor Castle for many years.
More recently, Prince Andrew has reportedly decided to give up his lease on Royal Lodge and move to a home on King Charles’s private Sandringham Estate in Norfolk. Sarah Ferguson, however, is not expected to join him there and is rumored to be considering a move to Portugal, possibly into a property owned by their daughter, Princess Eugenie.
This revealing account highlights the high tensions and complex personal dynamics within the royal family, shaped by loyalty, scandal, and the relentless scrutiny of the public eye.