They met as children when Sarah Ferguson would sneak away from her father’s polo matches to “play tag with like-minded truants”, including Prince Andrew. But it wasn’t until years later that they fell for one another and embarked on a fairytale romance the duchess still calls one of the “great love stories of the royal family”.
Now, 26 years after they separated, royal sources say the two have rekindled their love – and they’re even considering marrying again!
“They’ve never really cut each other out of their lives,” says a royal insider. “They share something neither of them could imagine having with someone else. It seems they’ve fallen for each other all over again.”
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Shocking royal split
The Duke and Duchess of York announced their separation in March 1992, but Fergie really became a royal outcast after a toe-sucking scandal five months later, when she was caught frolicking topless with financial adviser John Bryan in the South of France.
The shocking incident put an end to any hope of a reconciliation, and the royal couple divorced in 1996 after 10 years of marriage.
But there’s still an undeniable spark between Sarah and Andrew, both 58, who share daughters Beatrice, 29, and Eugenie, 28. The two sparked speculation of a reunion when they were seen flirting at Royal Ascot last month, with a gushing Sarah later sharing a photo from the event captioned, “Great day with my family.”
Although it’s been decades since they called it quits on their marriage, neither the prince nor Fergie has moved on, and they have continued to live together on and off.
Fergie’s Instagram snap that had royal tongues wagging.
Living separately… together
Both stayed at the family home, Sunninghill Park in Berkshire, until 2004, when Andrew relocated to Royal Lodge in Windsor Great Park, with Fergie then renting neighbouring Dolphin House. And despite Fergie moving into the $23 million Verbier ski chalet she and Andrew bought in 2014 and applying for Swiss citizenship, sources say she intends to move back to Royal Lodge full-time.
The upcoming wedding of their daughter Eugenie to Jack Brooksbank has also brought them closer, with the two spending a lot of time together making arrangements.
“It’s forced them to think a lot about their own marriage and how they wish things hadn’t ended the way they did,” says the insider. “They might even use the wedding to reveal their reunion to the whole family as well as their own plans for wedded bliss. Beatrice and Eugenie would be overjoyed. They’ve never exactly understood why their parents aren’t together.”
The York family holidaying on the ski slopes of Verbier, Switzerland.
Fergie and the Queen
In fact, Fergie has been hinting at the possibility of a reunion for years. When she was grilled about Andrew in 2013, she said, “He’s still my handsome prince, he’ll always be my handsome prince.”
And it would be easier than ever for the two to remarry. As Prince William has three children, Andrew is now seventh in line to the throne and free to marry whoever he chooses – without the Queen’s permission.
But it’s unlikely she’d have any objections anyway. The Queen’s always had a soft spot for Fergie and invited her to stay with Andrew and their girls at Balmoral a few years ago.
“The Queen is really open-minded these days,” says the insider. “That’s why she was so welcoming to Meghan.
“She wants to see Andrew happy and if Fergie is the key to making that happen, she’s willing to accept her back into the family.”
