AS King Charles prepares for his first Christmas as monarch, his thoughts have clearly turned to the message of the festive period – forgiveness.
As The Sun revealed yesterday, he has invited Prince Andrew’s ex, Sarah Ferguson, to celebrate with the Royal Family at Sandringham.
King Charles has invited Sarah Ferguson to celebrate Christmas with the Royal Family at SandringhamRex
GettyPrince Andrew’s ex, Fergie will be attending for the first time in three decades if she accepts the invitation[/caption]
She was banished by the Duke of Edinburgh when photos appeared of her having her toes sucked by her ‘financial advisor’ John Bryan
If the Duchess of York accepts the invite it will be her first time at the festive table for three decades.
Fergie was banished after incurring the wrath of the Duke of Edinburgh when photos appeared of her having her toes sucked by her “financial advisor” John Bryan.
I have known Sarah for 30 years and, although she has her detractors, it is indisputable that she has stood by Prince Andrew throughout his recent turmoil.
By inviting her to spend the holiday in the royal fold, King Charles is showing us all what Christmas is all about — family and forgiveness.
King Charles is a man of faith — he has his own Orthodox chapel in the garden at Highgrove, Gloucs.
In forgiving Fergie he is following his mother’s example, because the Queen, before her passing in September, had made up with Sarah, her former daughter-in-law.
Fergie always regretted the manner in which she was kicked out of The Firm, and confessed that if she was given a second chance she would behave herself better.
Speaking to The Sun prior to The Queen’s death, she said: “I’ve lived every girl’s dream. Again a princess. It’s just a beautiful story.
“And with it comes some things which you have to learn to navigate better, perhaps, which I could have done many times.”
News Group Newspapers LtdBy inviting her to spend the holiday in the royal fold, King Charles is showing us all what Christmas is all about – the pair kissing at a polo match in 1991[/caption]
ReutersIn forgiving Fergie, Charles is following his mother’s example[/caption]
It is not a total surprise that the King has extended the olive branch because Charles and Sarah used to get on really well, through a shared a love of skiing.
‘Vulgar, vulgar, vulgar’
While Andrew and Princess Diana were competent skiers, Fergie and Charles were top-class at the sport.
Had Sarah not been pregnant and feeling unwell on the fateful day when the royal party was struck by an avalanche in 1988, Fergie would have been on the ski run above Klosters. The tragic accident killed royal equerry Major Hugh Lindsay and seriously injured Prince Charles’ friend Patti Palmer-Tomkinson.
But Fergie is — and always was — a great survivor.
She is also vivacious, fun and good company. The Queen liked her from the start and was so fond of her she gave her the diamond York tiara to wear for her fairytale wedding to Andrew in 1986, watched by 500million TV viewers worldwide.
Fergie fitted in easily to royal life, something Charles admired. He used to say to his wife Diana: “Why can’t you be more like Sarah?” The two women, distant cousins, were firm friends, despite attempts to pit them against each other.
Fergie said: “She and I were the only two who really understood what it was like back in the Eighties. The pressure was ferocious and yet, together, the two of us were powerful.
“Not powerful in the sense of strength or importance, but in the love we had for each other, and the way we helped each other cope.”
Her marriage to Andrew could not withstand that pressure, and in 1992 they split. Then the infamous toe-sucking pictures appeared five months later and she found herself persona non grata.
She further angered the Royal Family with a tell-all interview to Oprah Winfrey. This was followed by calamity after calamity, including being caught in a newspaper sting attempting to sell access to her ex-husband for £500,000 in 2010.
Her most ferocious critic was Prince Philip, who was said to think Sarah was “simply beyond the pale”. A senior courtier is alleged to have called her “vulgar, vulgar, vulgar”.
But Sarah is tough — her rough upbringing, with an emotionally abusive mother, made her so. She’s used to shrugging off insults, and stuck by Andrew many years after their divorce.
Philip’s death in 2021 cleared the way for a tentative re-launch back into the royal fold. Sarah was invited — alongside Prince Andrew, her daughters and grandchildren — to spend summer at Balmoral and given access to the Windsor archives for research of her novel, Her Heart For A Compass.
Despite all that had happened, the Queen, who always liked Sarah’s vibrant personality, and appreciated her loyalty and the support she gave her favourite son.
She admired the way the Yorks, after the sadness of divorce, raised their two daughters, Beatrice and Eugenie, with love and unity.
The King shares this sentiment, and he does have a certain degree of sympathy for his brother after the Jeffrey Epstein scandal, and gratitude to Sarah for helping him through it.
The Duke of York is bruised and has never been so low, yet Fergie has helped lift his spirits. Stripped of his royal patronages and military associations, he is struggling to find a purpose or real meaning. He has found it mentally hard after being ostracised following his car-crash Newsnight interview in 2019.
The King, Diana and Sarah used to get on really well, through a shared a love of skiing – pictured Di and Fergie in Swiss in 1988Rex
Social MediaThe Queen admired the way the Yorks, after the sadness of divorce, raised their two daughters, Beatrice and Eugenie, with love and unity[/caption]
If Sarah had her way she would have blocked him from doing that interview in the first place.
She feels his aides were not strong enough to stand up to him, arguing they misguidedly idolised their boss and didn’t save him from himself.
Her devotion to Andrew, looking after him at their shared home Royal Lodge in Windsor, is more than most wives would have done in the circumstances.
I am told she believes whole-heartedly he has been stitched up in the Epstein sex scandal, otherwise how could any woman remain loyal?
Andrew, I am told, feels he was backed into a corner over Virginia Giuffre’s claim that he sexually assaulted her.
He wanted to fight it all the way, which is why he agreed to be stripped of his royal titles so there was no link to the Royal Family when he went to court in the US.
He felt that, if he won the case against Virginia Giuffre, there would be a place back in The Firm. Once he settled the Giuffre case, he felt there would be a place back in the Firm. But Charles made it clear that there is no way back.
Andrew agreed to settle the case out of court, for an undisclosed sum, thought to be up to £12million.
But the King is very fond of Andrew’s daughters, Beatrice and Eugenie, who will stay at Wood Farm, Sandringham with their father and mother over the festive period.
For his first Christmas without the Queen, Charles will want to be surrounded by family who have supported him as King since the day his beloved mother died on September 8.
Camilla, the Queen Consort, will be hostess. She will take the Queen’s old rooms, while the King will use Prince Philip’s bedroom.
Old feuds
One person at Sandringham for the first time will be Camilla’s daughter Laura Lopes, along with her husband Harry and their children, Eliza, Gus and Louis.
It is unlikely the Queen Consort’s son, Tom Parker Bowles will be there. He usually spends Christmas with his ex-wife and their children. The Queen won’t be far from anyone’s thoughts and I don’t expect they will change her festive traditions — getting dressed up for drinks on Christmas Eve and handing out cheap presents before a formal dinner that evening.
On Christmas Day they will have a late breakfast before walking to church. The King leading the Royal Family to St Mary Magdalene Church will be another historic moment.
Andrew and Fergie will keep a low profile but Beatrice and Eugenie will walk to the service. Camilla could go by car but she may want to walk, too.
The Queen always liked Sarah’s vibrant personality – pictured the late Queen at Scotland’s Highland Games, 1990Rex
Getty – ContributorShe also appreciated her loyalty and the support she gave her favourite son – Fergie marrying Andrew in 1986, wearing the York tiara[/caption]
William, with Kate and their three children, will probably stay at Anmer Hall, just around the corner from Sandringham, and turn up for the Church service at 11am.
It is all about presenting a unified family — and the King has no interest in continuing old feuds.
His major problem this Christmas is not going to be anyone sitting around the table on December 25 but the two people who will be missing — Harry and Meghan.
Charles has tried to forgive them — he would love to be able to end the friction — but contact with them has been limited. He did extend an olive branch when they came over just before the Queen died. They turned up late for the meeting and the King was only there for a short while.
Charles has been pushed to his very limit with the Sussexes — and the spectre of the couple’s Netflix series and Harry’s forthcoming book are still hanging over the Royal Family.
It took three decades for Fergie to make it back to the Christmas table — for Harry and Meghan, it might be an even harder road back.
Robert Jobson is author of forthcoming book Our King: Charles III. Read More