Everything about Sarah Duchess Of York totally explained
Sarah, Duchess of York (
née Sarah Margaret Ferguson, born
15 October 1959) is the daughter of Major
Ronald Ferguson by his wife Susan daughter of Fitzherbert Wright. The Duchess was for 10 years the wife of
Prince Andrew, the
Duke of York, who is
fourth in line to the
British throne. She is a former member of the
British Royal Family and the mother of
Princess Beatrice and
Princess Eugenie, who are respectively fifth and sixth
line of succession to the British Throne. She is popularly referred to as 'Fergie'.
Aristocrat
Sarah comes from aristocracy with royal
Stuart ancestry. On her father's side, Sarah is a descendant of King
Charles II of England from two of his illegitimate sons
Charles Lennox, 1st Duke of Richmond and
James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth. She is a great-great-granddaughter of
William Montagu-Douglas-Scott, 6th Duke of Buccleuch and a great-granddaughter of
Mervyn Wingfield, 8th Viscount Powerscourt. She is also a distant cousin of
Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, an aunt of
Queen Elizabeth II.
Marriage
Sarah and Prince Andrew's romance began after some scheming to bring them together was orchestrated by
Diana, Princess of Wales in 1985. Early in 1986 the couple were engaged and subsequently married in Westminster Abbey on
23 July 1986. Prince Andrew had the title of
The Duke of York bestowed upon him by the Queen. Sarah automatically became
Her Royal Highness The Duchess of York. In 1987, the Duchess became the first lady in the Royal Family to receive her Private Pilot's License.
The Duke and Duchess of York had two children during their marriage:
End of the marriage
By 1992, the marriage was experiencing trouble and the couple had drifted apart. While her husband was away on military or royal duties, Sarah was frequently seen in the company of other men, most notably
Texas multimillionaire
Steve Wyatt. Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson finally agreed to
separate in January 1992. In August 1992, surreptitiously taken photographs of
John Bryan, an American financial manager — in the act of sucking on the toes of a topless Sarah — were published in the British
tabloid newspaper
The Daily Mirror. The Duchess endured widespread public ridicule contributing to her further estrangement from the
British Royal Family. After some 4 years of being officially separated, the Duke and Duchess made the mutual decision to divorce in 1996. The Duke and Duchess of York remain close friends and share in the upbringing of their two daughters.
After the divorce
After her divorce the press criticism was constant, focusing not only on her weight (tabloid headline writers tagged her 'the Duchess of Pork') but also on her lifestyle and perceived extravagance. Having forgone a large divorce settlement in the hope of maintaining a civil relationship with the royal family, the Duchess set out in 1996 to establish a commercial and media career in the United States. She felt strongly that she shouldn't work commercially in Britain and opted to commute regularly between her home outside London and paid commitments in the US. In 1996, at the time of her divorce from Prince Andrew, it's said that Fergie owed in excess of £4.2 million pounds to
Coutts, the Royal Bank. Through lucrative American contracts she'd cleared these debts by 1998.
Having lost weight and discovered new confidence, Sarah felt able to pass on her experience to others as the U.S. spokesperson for
Weight Watchers International. The Duchess also brought attention to
child obesity and called for efforts to address this problem.
Sarah’s other commercial interests have included
Wedgwood china, home fragrances for U.S. retailer
Bath & Body Works, and a signature line of
Moissanite jewelry for K&G. Sarah is also a sought-after public speaker represented by the prestigious Washington Speakers Bureau. Over the course of several years, these activities, as well as the success of her many books, allowed Sarah to overcome the multi-million pound debts she amassed in the 80s and 90s.
Sarah commented in 2003, "I love the fact that [Americans] embrace me. I said I was sorry for whatever I'd done in the UK, and they embraced me and said, OK, we'll give you a second chance. And they've given me my life back, the American people." She now receives fewer intrusive and unflattering media reports in the UK.
Until 2004 the Duke and Duchess shared the family’s home,
Sunninghill Park, located outside London. That same year, the Duke moved to the refurbished
Royal Lodge, the former home of
the Queen Mother, who resided there until her death in 2002. In 2007 the Duchess purchased
Dolphin House, a mansion which neighbours Royal Lodge, placing the Duke and Duchess of York as next door neighbors. The Duchess also owns a penthouse apartment along Central Park South in Manhattan.
When
Susan Barrantes died in 1998, it was disclosed that not only had Sarah always contributed to Ms. Barrantes' ranch in Argentina, she'd also split her divorce money with her mother. Ms. Barrantes had struggled for years to keep her late husband's polo farm. Sarah and her sister Jane have cleared the debts.
Known boyfriends have included John Bryan, and
Count Gaddo della Gheradesca.
Charity work
1993, the Duchess founded Children in Crisis based in London with the support of two current trustees: Grahame Harding and Paul Szkiler. Over the years, Children in Crisis has grown to help over 250,000 children annually in 10 countries around the world.
March 2003, she joined the American Cancer Society at a congressional briefing. The Duchess was a founding supporter of The American Cancer Society’s Great American Weigh In, an annual campaign (modeled after the Society’s Great American Smoke Out) aimed at raising awareness of the link between excess weight and cancer.
2005, the Duchess was named a global ambassador for Ronald McDonald House .
2006, the Duchess established The Sarah Ferguson Foundation based in New York, which derives funds from the Duchess’s commercial work and private donations with the aim of supporting charities internationally that serve children and families in dire need. She visited China, Japan, Poland, Mexico, and cities across the United States.
2007, the Duchess is continuing her multi-continent fund-raising and media tour in the US.
In Britain, the Duchess is a long-standing patron to a number of British charities, including the Teenage Cancer Trust, Tommy's, and the Motor Neurone Disease Association .
She is also the official spokesperson of SOS Children's Villages - USA .
Books
Budgie the Little Helicopter books and animated children’s television programme:
- 1989, Budgie the Little Helicopter
- 1989, Budgie at Bendick's Point
- 1991, Budgie and the Blizzard
- 1992, The Adventures of Budgie
- 1993, Budgie Goes to Sea
- 1996, Budgie's Book of Colors
- 1996, Budgie and Pippa Count to Ten!
1995, Travels with Queen Victoria
1996, My Story (autobiography)
For young girls:
- 1997, The Royal Switch
- 1997, Bright Lights
Lifestyle books with Weight Watchers:
- 1998, Dining with The Duchess
- 1999, Dieting with The Duchess
- 2000, Win the Weight Game
- 2001, Reinventing Yourself
- 2002, Energy Breakthrough
2003, What I Know Now: Simple Lessons Learned the Hard Way
2003, Reflections. An accomplished amateur photographer, The Duchess published a collection of images in an art book, sold only in Britain, with all proceeds benefiting her UK-based charity, Children in Crisis.
2003, Little Red
2004, Little Red’s Christmas Story
2006, Little Red’s Summer Adventure
Early 2008, Hartmoor, Sarah's first historical romance novel set in 1812. (St. Martins Press)
Film
May 2004, the Duchess hosted an eleven-minute production featurette on Universal’s DVD ‘The Legacy of Pan.’
October 2004, Walt Disney Feature Animation released a special DVD 'The Cat That Looked At A King', with the Duchess’s voice in the role of the Queen. The story is derived from the books of Mary Poppins by P.L Travers.
The Duchess of York will have a producing role in the latest Martin Scorsese film about the early years of Queen Victoria’s rule, The Young Victoria. The movie, to be scripted by Julian Fellowes, who wrote Gosford Park, will focus on the often turbulent period after she became queen at the age of 18, and her romance and marriage to Prince Albert. Film production is due to begin by mid-2007.
TV and Radio
Health advisor in 'The Duchess In Hull,' ITV1.
In the United Kingdom:
- Guest editor on BBC Radio 4 Today program.
- Regular contributor to BBC Radio 2’s primetime lifestyle show Steve Wright.
- Previously co-produced and served as presenter in a documentary for BBC television called In Search of the Spirit.
- 1998, hosted an 8-part panel talk show on Britain’s SkyOne television.
- Appeared in an episode of the Vicar of Dibley.
In the United States:
Cultural references
1989, the Duchess' marriage is mentioned in the Sue Townsend book Adrian Mole: The true confessions of. It mentions Mr. Mole calling Buckingham palace and asking for the Duchess, and also him sending her a note to meet him outside the gates of Buckingham Palace to run away with him as she's his soul mate.
1992, in the Bottom episode "Digger," the Duchess is rejected with great disgust as a potential match for "Eddie'" when visiting a dating service, claiming that "even I've standards."
1995 onwards, the character of The Girlfriend in Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake is thought to be based on, or has similarities to (in terms of her acceptance by the rest of the Royal Family) the Duchess
May 1998, appeared as herself in an episode of the television show Friends when Ross Geller was married in London during the show's fourth season finalé. She was erroneously credited as "Sarah, The Duchess of York".
May 2000, in the American sitcom Will & Grace episode "My Best Friend's Tush," the characters Grace Adler (Debra Messing) and Karen Walker (Megan Mullally) visit a taco restaurant to find Helena Barnes (Joan Collins) while there, Karen, under her alias Anastasia Beaverhousen, claims to see "The Duchess of York". In shock, Grace asks "Do you think that Weight Watchers knows about this?"
2006, the title of R&B/Hip Hop singer Stacy "Fergie" Ferguson's debut album, The Dutchess was a reference to the fact that the two share the same surname. According to various media outlets, Sarah Ferguson called Fergie after the release of her album and remarked: "Fergie, it's Fergie... Now that you've done this, you've to sing at a concert for my foundation, 'Children in Crisis'." Fergie agreed and committed to two charity concerts, in London and New York City.
November 2006, The Duchess was honored for her AIDS campaigning at the New York AIDS Film Festival
.
February 2007, The Duchess was named Mother of the Year by the American Cancer Society.
Titles, styles, honours and arms
Titles and styles
15 October 1959 – 23 July 1986: Miss Sarah Ferguson
23 July 1986 – 30 May 1996: Her Royal Highness The Duchess of York
30 May 1996 – present: Sarah, Duchess of York
Sarah Ferguson's full style during her marriage was Her Royal Highness, The Princess Andrew, Duchess of York, Countess of Inverness and Baroness KillyleaghFurther Information
Get more info on 'Sarah Duchess Of York'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://sarah__duchess_of_york.totallyexplained.com">Sarah, Duchess of York Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
